The Shell
by Drunkpoodle
Summary: NEW CHAPTER!!! (Reno/TURKS work with Cloud n Tifa to uncover a mystery were he discover he unimaginable.)
1. I. A New Start

  
  
Chapter I  
  
The tall, lanky figure emerged from the veil of steam. His wet hair seemed to slither between his shoulder blades like the tail of a ruby dragon. He grabbed a towel and briskly padded the dripping strands until they were merely damp. He ran the same towel over his body in an attempt to dry off.  
  
Back in his bedroom he tossed clothes from his closet until he was able to put together a clean but horribly wrinkled white shirt, dark blue slacks, and matching suit top. Some of the clothes landed on the figure in his bed and she woke.  
  
"Where are you goin' so early baby?"  
  
"Work," was his simple reply.  
  
"When you gonna be back, muffin? Ima get lonely here without you."  
  
He grabbed his gun and electromag rod off the dresser, strapping the gun to a holster beneath his suit. He buttoned his shirt leaving the top two undone and his shirttails hanging out.  
  
"Don't you worry about that, " he replied before leaning down to kiss her neck almost passionately. She let out an inviting sigh as he began to whisper into her ear. "You'll be gone hours before I get back."  
  
His words caught her completely off guard.   
"Reno?"   
He silenced her by putting a finger to her lips. He turned to leave the room but paused in the open doorway.  
  
"Oh and...lock the door on your way out." And he was gone. Gone was the passion she'd heard in his voice and felt in his actions the previous night.  
  
She sat there in his bed gaping at the bedroom door, only the silk royal blue sheets covering her nakedness. But she didn't stay that way very long. She put on her clothes and grabbed her purse from the floor next to the bed. As she left the apartment she locked the door just as he had told her and left still feeling the sting of his words.  
  
The sting soon turned into hate. How dare he just use her like that. How dare he whisper sweet words of love then throw her out like the whore she was. How she wanted revenge...to make him pay for discarding her like bland chewing gum. He'd robbed her of her flavor then gotten rid of her when he was done.  
  
But she knew better than to act on that hate...to take revenge on Reno of the Turks. If she valued her shameless life, which she did, she would just accept what happened to her and shove any thoughts of revenge on Reno out of her sinful mind. And that's just what she did, making her way back to the bar for some cheap gil.  
  
  
  
Reno stepped through the glass doors of Reeve Power Co. headquarters earning brief glances from a few employees. They were all used to his sloppy demeanor and didn't pay him more than an indifferent glance.  
  
He strode past the secretary at the front desk, winking at the young woman stationed there. He didn't have to watch to know she was blushing furiously behind those thin wire-framed glassed. It had been pretty obvious for the past couple of weeks that she had a crush on the autumn-haired Turk. Reno himself felt nothing for her personally. He just found it humorous how she didn't know how to handle herself when he casually brushed past her in the halls or sent a grin in her direction.  
  
He reached the elevator as it was closing and held it open. He slipped inside and grinned at the bald Turk to his left.  
  
"So how'd it go with Elena?"  
  
"...fine, " he answered without facing his friend.  
  
Reno waited expectantly for Rude to expand on his night with Elena but none came.  
  
"And...?"  
  
The bald man remained unresponsive. That was just response Reno needed to confirm his suspicion. "Tseng still has her, huh?"  
  
"I don't know why. It's been five years since....you know." Reno nodded knowingly as Rude turned to watch the people below grow smaller and smaller as the elevator rose. "And there I was like a fool thinking she would magically forget him for me."  
  
"Rude, I probably know you better than any other man on this continent. If you were a fool I would have known long before today." He leaned his back against the glass and began to idly tap the glass with his nightstick. "She'll come around."  
  
Rude guffawed quietly, still watching the city below them. "I guess you would know Reno. So who was last night's lucky lady?"  
  
"Ah, you mean Simone? I got rid of her today. Her overbite was getting to me."  
  
What still had Rude perplexed to this day was how Reno did it. Women knew his reputation as a player and that he used them. Yet, they still didn't seem to hesitate with the chance for a possible relationship with him. None of them lasted more than a couple of days, of course. All Reno thought women were good for was a quick roll in the hay.  
  
The soft tone interrupted their conversation. They stepped off onto the forty-seventh floor of the building. The new headquarters was built in the restored city of Midgar. It wasn't the seventy-story monster that the ShinRa headquarters had been. It was fifty stories and the top three floors were used as file storage rooms. The very top floor was where they kept the most private documents.  
  
At the end of the hall, Reeve's office was the largest on the forty-seventh floor. Around ten or eleven o'clock the Turks would check in with him and inquire about new assignments.  
  
They knocked on the ebony doors and were given permission to enter from a tired voice. Reeve was taking a sip from his coffee when the two stepped inside and closed the doors.  
  
"Mornin' fellas." Reeve's voice was heavy with a lack of sleep but he forced a tired smile in their direction.  
  
"Looks like someone could use a nap, " Reno observed humorously.  
  
"Actually several would be nice, "he replied.  
  
Rude placed the usual security report on his desk before asking, "Have anything for us today?"  
  
He didn't respond immediately. He massaged the bridge of his nose for a moment before answering. "Yeah, actually. Ms. Dean, the head electrician, reported hearing some noises while in the basement yesterday. She said it sounded kind of human, like someone was in some real pain." He ran a hand through the ebony strands that pooled around his shoulders. "You think you could take a look for her sake? She was pretty spooked when she came in this morning."  
  
"No problem," Reno answered coolly. "What about Elena?"  
  
"She said she would be a little late today...her cat wasn't feeling to well."  
  
Reno chuckled at this. Elena had a soft spot the size of the Northern Crater for her cat Pickle. She would rush him to the vet if he even meowed funny.  
  
Rude, however, didn't believe Elena was late because of her cat. He hoped that what he said last night didn't upset her. The last thing he wanted was for her to be angry with him.  
  
"When she gets in I'll send her down to help."  
  
With that the Turks were dismissed and on their way to the basement.  
The middle-aged woman eavesdropping on the other side of the door scurried away quickly her head spinning with plans.  
  
  
  
Rude slid his ID card through the security check device on the wall next to the basement doors. The basement was broken into three sections. One held company supplies, both old and new. The second was basically a giant boiler room and the third was where those boilers were operated. That section held countless thermostats, regulators and fuse boxes. The first place they checked was there. It was dark except for the pale blue light coming from the end of Reno's nightstick. They could see the outline of complex control panels and switches.  
  
"How the hell do you turn on the lights?" To answer Reno's question, the lights suddenly snapped on. He turned around, startled, to see Rude standing near a simple light switch by the door. "Very funny Einstein."  
  
There were some pipes running from the floor to the ceiling in the corners so Reno made his way over there and listened for any groaning or funny noises.  
  
Nothing.  
  
Rude did the same and they agreed to search the "boiler" room. They listened carefully while examining the machinery. They were ready to check the last room when Rude heard something.  
  
"Let's go Rude. That geek probably got herself shocked and-"  
  
"Shhh!" Rude silenced him abruptly and they both listened for what Rude thought he heard.  
  
Then they heard it. It was nearly inaudible but it was clearly human. It lasted about two minutes but they had both heard it. It was a series of long and drawn out wails. Rude was definitely no fearful man but the sound sent chills fluttering down his spine.  
  
They both turned to each other to silently confirm that they both heard it. Then the ground trembled. It was almost non-existing but in their heightened state they felt it nonetheless. It did it again. That was all the confirmation Reno needed. "Let's tell Reeve."  
  
They headed for the basement entrance and Reno's heart skipped a beat when he plowed right into a familiar blonde.  
  
"What's wrong guys?" she risked brief eye contact with Rude but looked to Reno for an answer.  
  
"Not here...I'll explain on the way up."  
  
As they took the elevator back up Reno couldn't shake the feeling that they weren't going to like what those wail's lead to.  



	2. II

  
I kinda forgot to put a disclaimer on the first chapter so I'm doing it now. Better late than never huh?  
  
Disclaimer: Everything FF7 belongs to Squaresoft. I don't own Reno, Rude, Elena, ShinRa ect...unfortunately. I do own any original characters so if you wanna use em ask me first! So don't sue me unless you want a paperclip, some pocket lint, and 3 cents!!  
  
  
Chapter 2  
  
  
Reeve didn't like the sound of what the Turks told him. Sounded human? Who could possibly be living in or beneath the basement? Well, one thing was certain. He definitely didn't want anyone else to go down there without it being checked out first. They had to find out what the source was or he'd probably die from the suspense.  
  
"Well, I'm going to confiscate everyone's basement key cards until we figure this out." After listening to Reno and Rude's anecdote Reeve was wide awake. He'd expected them to come back reporting a noisy pipe or machinery that may have scared Ms. Dean. The grave look on Reno's face made him expect otherwise.  
  
He typed furiously at his computer sending out a notice to all staff. He demanded that all who were assigned a basement key card have them on his desk within the hour.  
  
"So what do think?" Reno asked the president. He honestly didn't know what to make of what they heard.  
  
"I'm not really sure. You all know this building was built on the foundation of the old headquarters. But the basement was already there. Who knows what that sound was."  
  
"Is there any way to go beneath the building?" Rude spoke up from his place in an armchair to Reeve's right.  
  
"Not that I know of..." He thought for a moment then he had an idea. "In the file storage we have some maps of the building. They might help..."  
  
He hit a white button on the intercom on his desk. "Eleanor?"  
  
"Yes sir?"  
  
"Get me the maps for the third floor down and some blueprints if you can find them."  
  
"No problem sir."   
  
"I don't see what the big deal is guys." Elena stood up from the sofa by the door. "It was probably just some pipes. The basement is pretty old. I don't see how a little creaking is reason enough for us to go all code red all of a sudden."  
  
"We aren't going "code red". I'm just taking a few precautions. You know, I think I should give Cloud a call."  
  
"STRIFE!?"  
  
"His name is Cloud, Reno."  
  
"I don't care what his name is...we don't mix. Besides, we don't need that bumbling idiot just to check out a little basement."  
  
"Relax Reno. I'm just going to let him know what's going on just in case we need his help."  
  
"Fine but if he shows up trying to play leader with the Turks he's got another thing coming."  
  
  
  
Tifa maneuvered expertly around the tables in her bar Heaven's Diamond. She carried two dishes of cheese fries on one arm and a plate of mozzarella sticks in the other. After setting them on a table in front of some customers she headed back behind the bar.   
  
There was just something about running a bar that made her happy. The sparkle of the cleaned shot glasses all lined up on the shelf under the bar. The foggy reflections of the tables and chairs on the polished hardwood floor. Sure there was the occasional tough customer who didn't know when to leave. But with her years of martial arts training to back her up they weren't that much trouble. When things got busy Cloud was there to help out.   
  
After Midgar was repaired and the planet settled down, Tifa and Cloud decided to open an inn in Sector 6. But it was too boring for either of them to handle. So it was back to the bar. They found decent space for rent in Sector 5 and with the gil the earned from the inn they opened the Heaven's Diamond bar.  
  
Today, mostly regulars were occupying the bar. At a far corner, about five men and women were occupied with a casual game of poker over half full glasses of beer. Others were either engaged in quiet conversation or sulking over life's many problems at the bar.   
  
There wasn't really anything to worry about when Tifa went to answer the telephone in the kitchen.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Tifa? This is Reeve."  
  
"Hey! How's it going up at headquarters?"  
  
"Could be better..."  
  
"What's wrong? Is everything ok?" Her voice immediately took on a note of concern.  
  
"We're not sure yet...we think something might be wrong but it could be nothing. Is Cloud around?"  
  
"He left to get some things from the shop for me. He should be back any minute. Can you tell me what happened?"  
  
"I sent Reno and Rude in the basement to check out some noises. They said it sounded human."  
  
"Human? That sounds creepy."  
  
"I know...Just in case we need some help; will you be able to come down here today?"  
  
"Probably. After Cloud gets back I can close up early today if you need us."  
  
"Thanks...I'll call back later and let you know."  
  
"Ok...take care."  
  
"You too."  
  
When he hung up Tifa went back up front to finish drying glasses. She hoped everything was ok but deep down she yearned for a little excitement. It was just too damn quiet nowadays.  
  
Ten minutes after she'd hung up Cloud came in through the backdoor carrying grocery bags and supplies. She gave him a warm smile while helping him with the load. "Reeve called..."  
  
  
  
"Sir, I have the blueprints you wanted."  
  
"Bring them in."  
  
"Yes sir."  
  
The Turks gathered around Reeve's desk as he spread out the large diagrams. They all studied them for themselves but there didn't seem to be a way past the basement level.  
  
"I don't see anything helpful."  
  
"Me neither, " Elena agreed with Reno.  
  
The other two kept examining the diagrams for something helpful. All of the elevator shafts seem to end at the basement. They traced pipelines and cables but they all ended abruptly at the basement as well.  
  
Then something caught Rude's attention. Underneath the boiler room, plotted in dotted lines, was what looked like a tunnel or shaft.  
  
"Hey...check this out, "Rude pointed to what caught his attention. They all strained to see. It was very faint and the aged texture of the map didn't help things much.   
  
He traced it with a finger but it ended suddenly where the border of the diagram began. "Maybe the sound traveled up that, " Elena suggested.  
  
"Maybe...But it definitely gives us a place to start looking. I could send Cait Sith down with you guys if your ready for another round."  
  
Rude and Elena looked to Reno for an answer. He wasn't too anxious to go creeping around under the basement but he did want to know the source of that noise. He had the feeling it was going to be more than they expected but they weren't going to find out hanging around in Reeve's office.  
  
"We'll do it."  
  
He activated Cait Sith and pulled out his PHS. "You guys head on down. I'm going to call Cloud and Tifa back and ask them to come. I'll control Cait when you get down there."  
  
With that, the Turks left his office for the second time that day headed towards the basement.  
  
  
  
They stopped at the basement entrance to ready their materia. Once inside they headed straight for the boiler room. There was a light bulb hanging in the center of the room and Elena was glad to shed some light on their dark surroundings. The room was a bit crowded with the four of them searching. But it didn't take them very long to find something promising.  
  
Reno discovered a floor panel beneath one of the boilers that looked different from the others. It was black compared to the others which were grey. He couldn't be sure judging from the blueprints but he guessed this was where the shaft was drawn. The tank was bolted to the panel so they weren't sure how to open it. They didn't bring anything to unbolt it with.  
  
They argued about whether or not moving it would upset the pipes and blow them to kingdom come. But the end Reno got fed up with the whole situation and demanded that Cait Sith just "lift the damn thing".  
  
Expecting the sound of resisting metal and bolts, they were all surprised when it came up quite easily. It appeared to be bolted deep into the floor but after Cait picked it up and the panel came up with it they realized it wasn't secured like the others. The hole beneath the panel was about one and a half square feet.  
  
"Well it looks like there was more to this room after all. So who goes in first?"  
  
After Reno's inquiry they all peered into the tunnel. There was a ladder against one side of the tunnel leading into an inky blackness. The tunnel didn't look very inviting and Elena sure wasn't itching to go in. "I'm not. You found it Reno...I think you should go."  
  
"Your such a wuss Elly."  
  
"Well I certainly can't fit, "spoke Cait Sith/Reeve.  
  
"Rude...?" They all looked at him expectantly. He simply shrugged and began to climb down the ladder. Reno followed, then Elena.  
  
Before the darkness enveloped them Cait called into the tunnel, "When Cloud and Tifa get here I'll send them in after you."  
  
They climbed down the tunnel for what seemed like forever. The only light came from Reno's nightstick which kept clanking against the metal sides of the tunnel. They all had flashlights but they couldn't hold them and climb safely down the ladder. So the electromag rod hanging from Reno's waist would have to suffice, although the noise was driving Elena bonkers.   
  
As they continued down the ladder a faint light made its way into the tunnel.  
  
"Well it's about time...my arms ache!"  
  
"Quit your yappin' Elly. You've got to be the weakest-"  
  
"Quiet! Both of you...listen." After Rude got them quiet they listened.   
  
The wailing...   
  
It was what Reno and Rude heard earlier that morning only louder. They were definitely much closer to the source. Now that they were closer they were certain it was human. Come to think of it, it even sounded...female?  
  
"That's what you guys heard!? What the hell are we getting into?"  
  
"It looks like we're all about to find out, " began Rude, "there's the end of the tunnel."   
  
  
  
88888888  
  
  
  
Author's notes: (hehehe...I've always wanted to write that!)  
  
Sorry about the cliffhanger...I know that was cruel of me. But don't worry, I've already started the third chapter and it'll probably be up in a day or two. Thanks to all who are reviewing for me. I'm pretty new to fanficing. I've read ton's but I never actually wrote one before. Your reviews are really encouraging and I'll try to update frequently. I'm on spring break now so things might slow down when I go back to school. But I vow not to leave the story unfinished like some authors out there! Hang in there for me!!!  
  
p.s: I'm thinking about naming the chapters. If you have any ideas for the first two so far aim them at drunkpoodle@yahoo.com and I'll try to pick one!!  
  
Drunkpoodle  
  



	3. III

Disclaimer: I don't on FF7 or its characters, ideas, ect... So don't sue me!!  
  
  
Now on with the story...  
  
  
Chapter 3  
  
  
The black-haired woman frantically leafed through what she had been able to steal of her brother's notes. After all this time she would finally get a shot at some *real* research. She knew one day her hard work at the Junon Academy of Science would pay off. Her brother may have thought he was the greatest but now that she had a chance she would prove him otherwise. And she would do so with *his* last specimen.  
  
  
  
The Turks found themselves in a large underground cavern. The walls were of some sort of rock, maybe granite. The floor was smooth, polished stone. Reno had never seen anything like it. Along one whole side of the magnificent room were roughly twenty glass cylinders, all of which contained a body in a blue liquid. However, only one of them was the source of the dim but cosmic blue glow they'd seen from the tunnel.  
  
They all had their weapons ready as they neared the only tank that seemed illuminated. But Reno, who was leading the group towards the tank, stopped short.  
  
"Reno...what's wrong?"  
  
Elena's question fell on deaf ears. Reno slowly made his way over to what devoured his attention so suddenly.  
  
/It can't be... /  
  
The Turks watched as Reno approached a particular cylinder. When he reached it, he looked up at it with disbelief.  
  
/All these years I thought...all these damn years /   
  
He sank to his knees in front of the tank head bowed and one had against the glass. The memories came flooding back.  
  
  
  
  
She smoothed soft red strands of hair from his face and tucked them behind his small ears before planting a soft kiss on his forehead. "I'll be back before dark, honey...I just need to pick up a few things from the shop."  
  
"Can I come with you mommy? I'll be good, " he pleaded with her.  
  
"Not this time short-stuff. I promise I'll be back before you know it. Be good while I'm gone and don't let anyone in...Ok?"  
  
"Ok."  
  
"That's my tough guy. Lock the door for me hon."  
  
He followed her to the door and when she left he turned the bolt lock using both of his tiny hands, standing on tiptoe to reach it. Then he waited...  
  
and waited...  
  
and waited...  
  
...but she never came through that door again.  
  
He waited for her for days but there was nothing. The days turned into weeks and when the bills weren't paid at the end of the month the bill collectors showed up. They took note of Reno's situation with little pity and it was off to the Sector 5 orphanage.  
  
Years at the orphanage taught him that no one was expected to look out for him but himself. He went from a ten-year-old thief to a fourteen-year-old delinquent to the seventeen-year-old leader of a well-known gang.  
  
When he was too old for the orphanage the streets hardened him into the typical Midgar thug. That is, until a certain raven-haired Turk gave him a few options and a future. He had long before then come to the conclusion that his mother walked out on him like the parents of countless others at the orphanage.   
  
  
  
  
Apparently, that wasn't the case.  
  
Rude came up beside him and gazed up at the figure in the tank from behind his midnight black shades.  
  
"I'll be damned..." He removed his shades to get a sharper look. The beauty of the woman behind the glass wasn't what caught his throat. It was the striking resemblance between his autumn-haired friend and the lifeless woman suspended in the glass cylinder.   
  
Her flame red hair drifted around her waist like the smoke from a spent incense stick. Her eyes were closed but Rude guessed they were the same aquamarine as Reno's. Her mouth was relaxed into a frown that seemed to give her an air of peace and seriousness. She didn't appear to be any older than thirty.  
  
Reno spoke without lifting his head, his voice glazed with ice, "She's been here all these years, Rude." He began shaking his head as he spoke the cursed realization. "All this time I thought she walked out on me Rude, but boy was I wrong." He let out a round of bitter, humorless laughter. Rude put a comforting hand on Reno's shoulder but the action went unnoticed. "To think...all this time I thought she found herself a "nice little life" above the plate without me, and *they* had her. I went to work everyday with her RIGHT BENEATH ME!!"  
  
His outburst echoed of the cavern walls causing a chill to grace Elena's spine. She never saw Reno lose control like that before. It frightened her a bit but she would be there for him if he needed it. If she had put it together correctly, that was Reno's mother in that tank and he wasn't taking it too well.  
  
She started to approach them but her journey stopped short when the wail came again. It rang off the cavern walls creating and eerie echo. The source was the illuminated cylinder about twenty feet away. They all watched in shock as thin but powerful tendrils of electricity wracked the body in the glowing tank.   
  
Elena carefully approached it but a voice from behind her hooked her attention.  
  
"What's going on?"  
  
Cloud and Tifa stood in front of the tunnel the Turks had come in. They had heard Reno's outburst from the tunnel and rushed the rest of the way down. Their eyes wandered around the cavern in shock.   
  
"What is this place...? It looks like some sort of underground lab." Tifa stepped further into the cavern staring up at the rocky ceiling towering high above them. Then she caught sight of the cylinders with female bodies suspended inside. Her hand came to her mouth as her breath caught in her throat. She hurried over to where Elena was approaching a glowing tank. "She's the one making that awful sound?"  
  
Cloud followed Tifa's lead to the glowing cylinder. Elena frowned at their presence and glanced over at where she last saw Reno. He was coming towards the group with Rude at his side. The earlier emotion in his demeanor was gone the moment Cloud and Tifa came through the tunnel.   
  
/He sure got it together quickly. Men. /  
  
"Elena, you think you can go through some of that equipment and find a way to get her out?" To Reno, the electricity seemed to be what was causing the woman to cry out. The electric tendrils make have been thin but he'd seen the affect his nightstick had on his opponents...electricity could be pretty deceiving.  
  
"Maybe. I'll go have a look."   
  
Like all of the other bodies, this one was naked and submerged up to the chin in a pale blue mako solution. Her ankle-length ebony hair covered most of her form. Her eyebrows were narrowed a bit and her mouth was parted slightly from the cry she had just released. The wires from about two dozen of the censors swirled their way up and out of the top of the tank to slither across the floor to an array of computers. Elena was hacking away at one of them at the moment and Rude chose that time to phone Reeve and fill him in.   
  
Cloud and Tifa observed the other tanks for any visible signs of life but Cloud couldn't toss the familiar feeling he got from the woman inside the glowing tank. There was just something about her that reminded him of Aeris. He couldn't place it. She did look a bit like her in simple ways...the smoothed almost youthful cheekbones and small elegant nose. But it wasn't all skin deep. He didn't want to voice his observations with Tifa...he was pretty sure she had the same feeling.  
  
"This has to be Hojo's work, Tifa. I can't think of a more twisted..."  
  
"I know, but where did he get all of these women? Somehow I don't get the feeling they volunteered for this."  
  
"He probably just picked them off the streets...away from their homes and families." He vaguely remembered being just like those women when he and Zack were trapped in the ShinRa mansion.   
  
Elena whistled to get everyone's attention.  
  
"It wasn't all that hard to get in. This system seems to have been set up quite some time ago so it's kind of dated." She scanned the screen for a moment before reporting her findings. "The tanks are hooked up to an automatic life support system (ALS), which have been programmed to deliver a sort of electric pulse to the occupant if their life signs weakened dangerously. The program ends if the occupant is lost..."  
  
"Does that mean all of these women except that one over there are dead?"  
  
Elena was a bit annoyed at Cloud's interruption but nodded to his question. She winced when she heard Reno sigh from his place to her right. Then she thought for a second.  
  
"Well actually, they aren't completely dead...not all of them. Their bodies may not be functioning but the mako enhanced solution they're in was made to preserve their bodies to the fullest." She scanned a menu before clicking on one of sections. A chart appeared on the screen with some of the selections highlighted. "TK. 2, 6, 7, and 13 may only require a full life. The others, except TK. 17 who seems to be alive, are lost completely."   
  
Reno leaned over her chair to examine the screen for himself before inquiring into her ear, "Which one is *she* in, Elena?"  
  
His voice held an almost desperate edge. As she scanned a diagram of the tanks' layout she silently prayed that Reno's mother wasn't a lost cause.  
  
"She's in TK. 7, Reno. /Lucky number seven... /", she thought thankfully.  
  
"Is there a way to get them out?" Cloud asked with his back to the group.  
  
"Yes...number seventeen is weak but she should be ok. The program made a mistake. She wasn't really weak in the first place when it began to shock her so it ended up doing more harm than good...Probably why she was wailing like that. If I move the others, it may kill them completely."  
  
"Let's concentrate on the living one first then worry about the others."  
  
"No one asked you, Blondie."  
  
Before Cloud could reply to Reno's remark Tifa shushed him, "Let it go Cloud, we have more important things to worry about."  
  
"I'm going to go ahead and drain number seventeen." With that, Elena highlighted tank seventeen and clicked on the option to shut it down and drain the solution. Cloud and Rude rushed over there as the woman inside slumped against the glass. As the glass slid up Rude caught her and placed her on the floor. He removed the coat from his Turk uniform and placed it over her while Cloud checked her vital signs.  
  
Reno waited patiently after giving Elena the "ok" to drain number seven. He waited for the solution to drain and the glass to lift before catching the redheaded woman. He tenderly laid her on the floor repeating Rude's actions by covering her with his jacket. Then he frantically searched his weapon for a Life materia. He had a new one so it wasn't yet mastered. He whispered "Life One" over her still form but nothing happened. He tried again and the green tendrils surrounded her body. When they receded she still wasn't breathing and there was no pulse.  
  
It just wasn't meant to be...  
  
/It has to work. Now that I've found her.../  
  
"Let me try..." Tifa squatted beside Reno and slid a Full-Life into her glove. "Full-Life..." The moment the words left her mouth brighter green fibers snaked their way around the body. Most of the cavern was bathed in an ethereal glow before it suddenly faded.   
  
The woman on the floor coughed and spit out solution from the tank. Her breathing was labored and shaky but she *was* breathing. Tifa checked for a pulse. "She's alive but not strong. We should...oh my..." Tifa looked back and forth between Reno and the unconscious lady. "Is she-"  
  
"Yes...she's my mother."  
  
It was pretty obvious. She could almost pass for his sister. Tifa's heart went out him almost immediately. She never knew Reno past their usual encounters at her bar. One really couldn't call the drunken passes he made at her and one-sided conversation, on his part, bonding. However, they had actually held an entertaining conversation once or twice when she was able to coax his dangerous gaze to her face and away from her chest.   
  
She didn't seem to harbor the natural hate for him that Cloud had. At one time she thought she did hate him, at least for dropping the sector 7 plate on so many innocent people, not to mention close friends of hers. But then her part in bombing the reactors was no better. They had called themselves freedom fighters, AVALANCHE: a cold wave of destruction that not even ShinRa could withstand. But she couldn't, with the slightest hint of a clear conscience anyway, believe no innocent people were killed when a reactor went up in flames because of them. Hating Reno or any of the Turks would be the lake calling the ocean wet.  
  
Cloud, on the other hand, refused to put himself in the same slot with *any* Turk. And that's just what he thought as he glared poison darts at the flashy-headed Turk squatting on the floor next to his best friend.   
  
Tifa placed a sympathetic hand on Reno's, "I'm so sorry..."  
  
"Don't be, "He replied almost testily. "It's my burnt sausage...I'll deal with it." Tifa raised an eyebrow at his crude way of viewing the situation but she could understand him not wanting anyone's pity. Tifa warmly smoothed wet strands of red silk from the woman's still face and tucked them behind her ears. She was very beautiful...probably where Reno got the face that attracted women like a mastered chocobo lure did for the week minded fowl.  
  
Reno suddenly noticed Cloud's gazed and met it with equal vehemence. Tifa and Rude both noticed their friends and stood up. Tifa cleared her throat to fracture the tension.   
  
Rude spoke up, "I'm going to call Reeve back and have him clear the clinic floor. We can't do much for them all the way down here." He phoned Reeve while Elena tried to gather more useful information.   
  
"I don't get it, "she began half to herself, "The first part was pretty easy to get into but ::sigh:: this part is way more advanced. It's like its been updated or something." She stood up and stretched while taking another good look around the cavern. "I think we should come back later. I could put some of this on disk and run it through some programs at home." Not to mention she had had enough of this Planet-forsaken cavern.  
  
"Yeah, "Tifa agreed, "besides, I don't think the chill down here is doing these women any good." They all grunted in affirmative.  
  
Knowing they would be traveling down a shaft of some sort, Elena took the time to stash some rope in her bag.  
  
"Elly, we should use some of that rope you brought. We need a way to bring them up."   
  
They all got to work planning who would carry them. Reno decided without hesitation to carry his mother. Cloud would have carried the other woman but that would leave either Rude or Elena to carry his sword and there was no way in hell he would trust a Turk with his weapon. So the dark-haired woman was roped to Rude's back. Cloud lead the way with Tifa then Elena following. Cloud refused to give Reno the pleasure of following behind Tifa.   
  
As she placed her hands on the rungs of the ladder Elena groaned at the long climb ahead of them.  
  
  
  
  



	4. IV

Rating: pg13 but that will probably change  
  
Chapter 4  
  
  
Reno and Rude were thoroughly exhausted when they reached the top of the tunnel. The weight of the unconscious women and the force of gravity made a lovely team while they struggled up the ladder. They didn't talk very much while ascending the somewhat eternal ladder. Everyone seemed to be engulfed in his or her own thoughts.   
  
Reno anticipated speaking with his mother after so long. Like an ungrateful guttersnipe he had let a dozen orphans, who had never had loving parents, make him believe his would leave him for the first possible chance at a better life above the plate. He had never felt more worthless and guilty in his life. He could only hope she would forgive him...make him her son again, that is, if she remembered anything...  
  
If he was correct in assuming she was put in that tank around the same time she disappeared then she had been suspended in well...time for over twenty years. Come to think of it, would she even recognize her son? Twenty years ago he was a five-year-old squirt that couldn't even see over the kitchen sink. Now he was a little over six feet tall and the word "squirt" would be one hell of an understatement.   
  
His scars made their way onto his face at sixteen when he got into a austere scuffle with an older man who was trying to rape a girl from his orphanage. She was new and dangerously innocent, rare for a slum girl of fourteen. After the broken glass had polished both of his smooth cheeks Reno planted a switchblade miles into the scumbag's chest.  
  
He could barely hope his mother would except the changes in him.  
  
Cloud's thoughts on the unconscious oak-haired lady were a bit less decisive. One wishfully thoughtful half focused on the idea that the woman had some connection with Aeris. She sure had enough physical similarities for him to pursue the issue. And he was *sure* he felt something radiating from her. It was nearly the same aura, same presence he associated with Aeris. He had never been around someone other than her that made him feel that way...like everything was going to be all right. He though he saw the recognition in the Brandy pools of best friend's eyes as well.   
  
The other half of him wasn't so sure. The chances of a random woman, imprisoned beneath the new headquarters, being related to Aeris in some way were slim. Aeris never told them of any other kin than her biological mother who died when she was five.   
  
/Maybe she didn't *know* of any other living relatives... /  
  
That too was possible. But the only way he would find out for sure was to ask her when she was well enough to speak. He only prayed Hojo or whoever had her down there didn't do something awful to her.  
  
Elena, at the time, had been dwelling on what Rude had said.  
  
I've loved you for so long...  
  
Words had never failed her until then. Here she was trying to walk away leaving her love for Tseng behind her and Rude's affections had jumped in front of her.  
  
I...I'm so...sorry. I'm not ::tear:: I'm just not ready ::tear...tear:: for this.  
  
Immediately after leaving Rude standing in front of the company headquarters she felt like the worlds biggest Bandersnatch. Like a monster, she left him there thinking she didn't care for him and that it was something he did to make her cry. The truth was that she really did care a lot for Rude...enough for a potential *something* between them. But she still wasn't sure of herself and honestly didn't know when that would change.  
  
When they emerged from the tunnel Cait Sith came over to help them untie the women from Reno and Rude. Rude was too exhausted to carry her any further. So Cloud slipped one arm behind her knees and the other behind her shoulders carrying her to one of the paired elevators at the basement entrance. Reno was just as tired as Rude, if not more, but he didn't give the others the option of carrying his mother. He, Rude, and Elena filed into the left elevator while Cloud, holding the woman, Tifa, and Cait went to the other. Cloud could see the other group through the glass elevator shafts going up as they were. He took a moment to glare at Reno through the glass but Reno just turned his back to Cloud and leaned against the glass of his elevator.  
  
Tifa followed Reno's example of leaning against the glass while Cait punched in some codes to the elevator. She exhaled so that her breath blew her bangs away from her face before they settled down again. She thought about the unconscious lady in Cloud's arms. She noticed some familiar traits in the woman...traits that reminded her of a certain flower girl. Tifa was quite content being just best friends with Cloud. She had also noticed the developing romance between him and the warm-hearted Cetra but was happy for them. The only thing she worried about now was if Cloud would ignore her completely if this woman turned out to be connected to Aeris in some way. Tifa knew Cloud must have noticed the same things in the lady...  
  
/But why hasn't he said anything yet? Does he feel he can't trust me? /   
  
As if in answer to her mental inquiry Cloud broke the silence. "I've noticed something Tifa...about this lady, I mean." She looked curiously into his eyes as if she had no clue what he was talking about. "Have you noticed something about her?"  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Didn't you notice anything *familiar* about this girl?"  
  
He had sounded hesitant as if a bit unsure of himself. Tifa didn't really want to be the one to voice what they both had noticed. She still missed Aeris and didn't want to be the cause of a false alarm if the lady really had nothing to do with her.  
  
"She's...kinda pale I guess."   
  
"Yeah but...what about her face. Doesn't she look like someone?"  
  
Why didn't he just come out and say it himself!? Why did he need her to say it for him?  
  
/Isn't that what you wanted...for him to confide in you? /  
  
"Well she does look a little-"  
  
"We're here folks! Let's go." Cait saved Tifa for the time being as they followed him down the hall. The Turks had just gotten off the elevator and were following a bit behind them. The halls were deserted except for the occasional security machine making its rounds. When they got to their destination Reeve was standing outside the door and immediately dropped his gaze to the two comatose women.   
  
"Are...are they alright?" Reeve was worried at how pale they were.  
  
"We think so but they still need help, "Tifa answered for the group. Reeve studied their faces a moment then remembered that they were still standing in the hallway.   
  
"Oh uh...there's two rooms for them. C'mon. The doctors will have a look at them." They followed him to the rooms but Reno and the Turks went to one room while Cloud and the others went to another. In both rooms doctors immediately took control and began fastening an IV and sensors to the women.  
  
Reno didn't like the familiar sight of sensors and wires attached to his mother and got a little edgy. "What the hell are you doing? What are those for?"  
  
"They monitor her heart rate and vital signs...we're only trying to see if she's in stable condition, sir. Please don't worry..."  
  
"Don't tell me when I should worry. If anything happens to her, "he began a low, threatening voice, "I'll fry..."  
  
A firm hand on his shoulder interrupted his threat. "Reno, they doing their job. Lets just give them some space and let them help her." Only because it was Rude, Reno ended the threat with a glare and sat in the seat closest his mother. The head doctor immediately began barking medical orders in what could likely pass as another language.  
  
"Kate, get her under the cardial tra...actually make that a Holter."  
  
"Yes sir."  
  
"Jean, she might need some 4E-37s."  
  
"How many?"  
  
"Two should be enough. I'll go ahead and take some blood."  
  
Reno watched them set out to tend to their individual tasks. The nurse the doctor identified as Jean was trembling a bit as she slid respirator tubes up the patient's nasal passages and down her throat. Reno was watching each of them like a Zolom. Whenever their eyes met he seemed to search her thoughts for possible deceit or malevolent thoughts. The head doctor, Dr. Naid, either didn't notice or ignored Reno. He knew what he was doing and was used to the worried relatives of his patients.  
  
Once satisfied that no one was going to hurt his mother he relaxed in his chair. Behind his midnight shades, Rude's eyes were distant. Once again he was mentally kicking himself in the ass for what he said to Elena. He casually stole a glance at her but she was busy sifting through her bag for something. She was pretty absorbed in the task and didn't notice him watching.  
  
/So beautiful.../  
  
She had such an air of innocence about her that no one would suspect her deadly nature. He loved the simple things about her like the way she got so worked up over trivial problems, how her smooth cheek's flushed whenever Reno made some perverted comment about women, or how she held the tip of her tongue between her lips when she was concentrating of something...  
  
...which she happened to be doing at the moment.  
  
When Elena reached the end of her search she closed her bag as Rude adverted his attention back to Reno and the doctors. Apparently Reno was arguing with Dr. Naid who was trying to draw blood. Reno utterly refused to allow them to put a needle of any sort in his mother.   
  
"Listen DOCTOR, I don't care what you need. That sharp ass thing isn't going ANYwhere near her."  
  
In truth, the needle itself was only about an inch long...an inch too long in Reno's opinion. The doctor was fighting for his calm when Elena intervened.  
  
"RENO, he is trying...to...HELP! They are her only chance right now. Why don't you cut them a little slack."  
  
"This isn't about you so mind your *damn* business."  
  
"Reno, "this time Rude spoke up, "there's no reason for that. She's right. Why don't we give them some time and go get a drink or something?"  
  
Feeling a little betrayed he cast one last look on everyone in the room and stormed out taking the tension with him. There was a caf‚ around the corner from the clinic rooms and he really could use something sweet and hot.  
  
Back at the room Rude and Elena let out a sigh. Reno sure could be one pot of steam...  
  
"I don't have my stuff with me so I'll have to ask Reeve if I can get it from my apartment or do it tomorrow." She headed for the neighboring room to find Reeve, and Rude left to find Reno after casting one last glance at the unconscious redhead.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Author's notes:  
I'm sooooo sorry that took so long. The truth is that I've had it half done for about a week but I've had soo much work. I planned to write a little whenever I had time after homework but this Friday was the only chance. I hated to keep you waiting and I thank those who are reviewing and checking for updates. Chapter 5 shouldn't take as long since the marking period just ended and I don't have so many tests. The offer still stands for any one who wants to help me name the chapters! Just mail me...drunkpoodle@yahoo.com  
Questions/comments welcome!  
  
:::::::Drunkpoodle:::::::  
  



	5. V

  
  
  
Chapter 5  
  
  
The black-haired woman pulled her long but stringy strands into a careless ponytail using the same rubber band she'd used for a week.  
  
It was functional.  
  
She pulled a black and slightly worn brief case from beneath her bed and opened it. There were a few old papers there, which she gathered in one hand and tossed them on the bed. Then she proceeded to fill along a pocket on the bottom of the case.  
  
/I know this is where I kept it... /  
  
"Aha..." she exclaimed quietly as her hand ran into a thin pamphlet. She pulled out the yellowed booklet and opened it carefully. The book, along with the briefcase and its contents, was a treasure of hers for years. It was the first briefcase her older brother had owned during his ascending scientific career. The papers were some of his old notes and the book itself was a small journal he'd kept. When she'd first read through the book it could have very well been written in Cetra. But the minute amount she did comprehend made her want more...more science, more knowledge.  
  
Her brother had discarded that particular case when she'd given him a new one as a gift when he'd been promoted within the ShinRa Scientific Research Department. Although she'd spent nearly all of her savings on the expensive deep brown leather attach‚ case he wasted no energy concealing his dissatisfaction for the gift.   
  
// How it hurt when he'd stared impassively at the gift for endless seconds before moving it aside with a dry remark, "Lao-Anne, you know I hate brown."  
  
And that was it. No "thank you" or appreciative remarks of any kind left his lips. It was already enough that he never visited the family as frequently as he used to or call her "Lao-Lao" like he did before he graduated from Junon's academy. But her parents, who took careful notice of the ungrateful acceptance of the gift, reprimanded *her*.  
  
"You know better than to give him something he wouldn't like. That was very unthoughtful of you Lao-Anne Hojo. Now you'll use the rest of your money to buy him something he likes."  
  
"But mother I..."  
  
"Mother dear, I suppose all of that isn't necessary. I'll probably find *some* use for the old thing."  
  
"Are you sure Laenin? You don't have to use it. Lao-Anne knows better..."  
  
"I'm sure mother. It isn't a total waste."  
  
"Alright then." //  
  
  
During the rest of the day Lao-Anne could have very well been kidnapped and the family wouldn't have noticed until her brother left for Midgar again.  
  
Yet she held onto that brief case tighter than ever. Now that she understood the secrets hidden within the fine scientific script of his notes and ideas, that briefcase was more important to her plans than anything else.  
  
She opened the book up from its opposite end and turned it upside down, for the notes in this section of the book were written upside down.  
  
Sub-Project I: "Cetra Procreation"  
  
I have decided the following selected females are eligible vessels for the experiment.  
  
01= Stephanie Dunst   
02= Kathy Ellid   
03= Alexa Freidman   
04= Diane Fresk   
05= Marissa Gid   
06= Candice Holst   
07= Giovanna Hstadin  
08= Maria Kile   
09= Tradish Kine   
10= Annie Kingston  
11= Rita Lenee   
12= Francesca Liranee   
13= Almiria Loeky  
14= Radina Minsky   
15= Ida Naitavich  
16= Elizabeth Patel   
17= * Casca Ristine  
18= Brenda Wallace  
19= Nadeen Wickinson  
20= Zhao-tsu Yeng  
  
* Single required Cetra specimen  
  
All have placed in their preservatory tanks until I can study them privately. The head of the science department, Professor Ghast, has made mention of traveling to a more secluded location to study an extraterrestrial organism away from the prying eyes of Midgar. Perhaps this project can be given more attention upon my return.  
  
Laenin Hojo //  
  
  
  
Lao-Anne took a deep breath to control her excitement. She was sure of it now. The reason President Reeve was acting so hush-hush had to be her brother's project. All these years she'd searched for it and he'd probably found it for her.  
  
She stuffed the book back in its compartment and began filling the inside pockets with hypodermic needles and capsules filled with several unidentified concoctions. She just had to get a hold of those women somehow...  
  
This would be an *exciting* week.  
  
  
  
  
The doctors in the room the ebony-haired woman occupied had long since left her to rest. Apparently, she was much stronger than the other patient and only needed an IV and some heart monitors to assure her recovery. A nurse was away at the moment getting the results of her blood test.  
  
Cloud was seated in an armless chair against the wall while Tifa stood by the bed. She checked her watch and let out a sigh. Reeve was leaning against the doorframe speaking with his secretary over the PHS.   
  
"...don't care who asks. No one else is allowed down there until this whole thing gets figured out...I know, tell her I said she could have the day off..."  
  
Tifa was a bit concerned about whether or not she and Cloud should get back to the bar. It was already late afternoon when she and Cloud arrived. Now it was a quarter to six o'clock and she was a bit weary. Not to mention the day's discoveries were a bit overwhelming. She stole a scrutinizing glance at Cloud and seeing him holding his head in his hands from either exhaustion or concentration gave her reason to believe he was just as taxed as she.   
  
Both of them look up when Elena came in. Reeve had just gotten off the PHS and moved aside so that she could enter fully.  
  
"Is everything OK over there with Reno and..."  
  
"...Uh, yeah but she is a little weak right now. They're still working on her, "she replied with a hint of gloom.  
  
She crossed the rest of the room to stand at the foot of the bed. The woman's breathing was even and she seemed to be resting comfortably enough. This angered Elena a bit. Here was this nobody recovering just fine while Reno's mother, one of her best friends' mother was in the next room fighting to breathe on her own. She didn't wish anything negative on this woman she just wanted to see Reno's mom recovering so brightly.  
  
/I wonder why this one stayed healthy so long.../  
  
She was reminded of her reason for being here and turned to Reeve again.  
  
"I want to go back down later, maybe tomorrow, and save some things for my computer. I have some programs at home that might help me decode the rest of the information on this...project."  
  
Elena continued with a shrug, "Who knows...maybe I'll find something useful."  
  
"You should do it tomorrow, its getting kinda late. Which reminds me..."  
  
Reeve turned his attention to Cloud and Tifa.  
  
"Would you two like to stay here in the guest rooms for a while? The train back to Sector Five won't be here for another hour and you're probably tired, "he added a bit hopefully. It would be nice to be around them again after so long.  
  
"Well..." Cloud looked to Tifa for an answer. He could see she was tired and wouldn't mind staying himself. "We'll stay. We should call our neighbor and let him know we won't be back for a little while."  
  
"Great guys. Elena could you show them to the guestrooms before you leave? Well, unless you're staying here tonight."  
  
"Sure, I'll take them down. I'll probably go back to my apartment though so I can check on Pickle. Reno will most likely be staying here..."  
  
"Ok then...I'll be in my office if you guys need me."  
  
They left the room, Reeve off to his office and the others to the residential quarters.  
  
  
  
Rude stepped into the small company caf‚ and scanned it for his friend's presence. The lighting was comfortably dim but he could make out a few off-duty security soldiers chatting away at a small table against the wall. Some employees were scattered about at private tables enjoying their time off.  
  
He spotted Reno in the darkest, farthest corner of the caf‚. He silently approached and sat down across from him at the booth. For a long moment they sat there silently, Reno avoiding his friend's gaze. A blonde woman in a caf‚ uniform approached them and addressed Rude.  
  
"Would you like something sir?"  
  
"I'll have what he's having."  
  
"That'll be a medium cappuccino...with or without whipped cream?"  
  
"Without, thank you."  
  
The lady returned a moment later with Rude's order and they were alone once more. Reno couldn't take the silence anymore and was the first to shatter it.  
  
"Why are you here? I thought you guys *wanted* me to leave."  
  
"You know why I'm here."  
  
Reno cocked his head to the side in mock contemplation before replying with thick sarcasm, "Actually, no. I don't know why you're here. Care to enlighten an old friend?"  
  
Rude took a sip from his cappuccino and gave Reno a blank look from behind his shades.  
  
"You."  
  
Reno let out a short round of sardonic laughter. "No, really why are you here?"  
  
"You."  
  
"No no no. You can't be here because of me. You guys *wanted* me to leave." Then his voice took on a more vehement tone. "I'm not allowed to be around my own *fucking* mo-"  
  
"You know that's not why we thought you should leave. Let's face it: you were being a bit over-protective. Those doctors were trained to *save* lives. You were only hampering their progress."  
  
Reno gazed blankly at his drink as Rude tried to bring him to reason.  
  
"Elena and I are worried about her too. You guys are like family...your mother is my mother. We're all looking out for her...just like we're looking out for you."  
  
Reno leaned back in his seat, bringing his head back with a sigh. He didn't realize what an ass he was being. How could he *ever* in his life think his only real friends would act against him? They were probably the only family he'd had during his career as a Turk and he didn't trust them. He was just so worried he couldn't think straight. He was sure Rude could see this, or he wouldn't be here.  
  
"Sorry man. I guess I was being a pain in the ass but it's my fault. If I had looked for her like a *real* son she may not have been in some damn tube for twenty years. I was such bastard..."  
  
"You can't blame yourself. You were five when it happened. If everyone around me kept forcing the idea in my head that my mother abandoned me like countless others I probably would have believed it too. The best thing you can do now is be there for her now. Twenty years have gone by Reno. She needs you."  
  
"I know. I don't if I can take her rejecting me. I was five when she last saw me...I might as well be a different person now."  
  
"She won't reject you Reno. Mothers know their children Reno and you're no exception."  
  
Reno didn't reply. He had a lot to think about but his friend's words lifted a lot of weight from his soul. He stood, Rude doing the same. Rude left some gil on the table for the drinks even though he hadn't finished his. He wasn't there to drink, after all.  
  
"I'm staying at my room here tonight. I'm definitely going to be there when she wakes."  
  
"Yeah, I'm staying too."  
  
As they exited Reno paused in his tracks and Rude turned to see why.  
  
"Rude, when the *hell* did you become a damn counselor?"  
  
Rude let out an unfeigned chuckled as they continued down the hall.  
  
"I'm a lot of things Reno...a lot of things."  
  
******  
  
Author's notes:  
  
See! I told you I wouldn't take so long this time. As a matter of fact, I have a geometry test to study for but I got a few...ahem...*urging* reviews so I figured what the hell. Its movin kinda slow but I have to get a few scenes out of the way. The "black-haired woman" has an identity and a past now. :::yay::: Stay tuned for Chapter 6. It should be out of the oven by the end of the weekend.  
  
That's all folks!! =)   
  
  
Wanna name the chapters? Aim here: drunkpoodle@yahoo.com  



	6. 

  
  
  
Chapter 6  
  
  
For the second time that day Reno emerged from a thick veil of steam. This bathroom was a bit smaller than the one in his apartment with only a shower stall instead of a bath. He took his time fully drying off and made the short trek to his room. His suite at the headquarters was fully furnished and stocked with the essentials but he seldom stayed there. If he had a late night on the job and was too lazy to drive home then he took advantage of the comfy little apartment.  
  
Reno scarcely showered more than once a day. He was either too tired or didn't care to as long as he couldn't smell himself. Tonight, however, was different. If his mother woke to a sweaty, mangy-haired assassin she'd never except him.  
  
He fished through his closet for another uniform but his search was fruitless.  
  
/probably all at home.../  
  
There were some shirts and slacks that he picked through hesitantly. He had planned on wearing his Turks uniform. That was who he was, after all, and he wanted his mother to know him for being himself...  
  
...even if he was a cold-hearted killer.  
  
But that wasn't right. He didn't easily admit it but he was nowhere near as ruthless as he had been under ShinRa. Yet Reeve had a lot to do with that. Fortunately, Reeve wasn't in the habit of assigning assassinations. The Turks normally served as his bodyguards whenever he traveled or as head of security while he was at headquarters. Sometimes he sent them to investigate company problems or see that a shipment made it to Midgar safely. He never asked them to kill someone even for his own purposes as ShinRa had.  
  
That's not to say he wasn't still as dangerous. The last Neanderthal that made that assumption found his ass planted on the bar floor. No one insulted Reno and survived intact enough to even whisper the ordeal.  
  
Well, his mother didn't have to meet that part him immediately. Actually, it was a part of him he'd rather she didn't meet at all.   
  
He pulled out an olive-green polo shirt and some black slacks that were clean and got dressed. As he stood in front of the oval half-body mirror in his room his brow creased with indecision.   
  
/Leave the top two unbuttoned, just the top, or button them all...? /  
  
He didn't want to walk in there like a thug, but he also didn't want to look like some prep-school graduate.  
  
/If I leave the top two undone I might seem a bit...*untamed*/  
  
He allowed himself a boyish grin at the thought but it slowly fell as another thought crossed his mind.  
  
/What mother wants an "untamed" son? /  
  
Reno let out a sigh of frustration / Ah...what the hell. / and undid the top two buttons with annoyance. He studied his appearance as a characteristically mischievous grin found its place on his handsome face. Leaving the top two undone reviewed just enough of his bare chest to give lookers a taste of his finely toned muscles...the fruits of years of labor as a Turk.   
  
/Heh heh...what's there not for a mother to be proud of? /  
  
Being done with that he ran a hand through his damp fiery locks. Using a black rubber band, he put it all back in a ponytail that slithered down between his shoulder blades nearly to his waist. With one last smirk at his reflection Reno grabbed his PHS and nightstick off the dresser before leaving his apartment for the clinic floor.  
  
When he walked into his mother's room he almost assumed there was no one else there until Jean looked up from a little desk in the corner. Her breath almost caught in her throat. When she rediscovered her voice she offered a polite apology.  
  
"I'm sorry sir, you just startled me."  
  
"It's a'ight. How is she?"  
  
The nurse was already surprised by the physical transformation of the hotheaded Turk but he seemed to be a whole new person. His gaze no longer scrutinized her actions for cruel intentions. Instead, he seemed calm enough, if not a little nervous.  
  
"She seems healthy. I was just reviewing the results of her blood test. There is a low level of Mako running through her circulatory system but it isn't doing her any harm. She isn't suffering from Mako poisoning."  
  
She walked over to some monitors and studied them as she spoke. "My first guess was that she was infused with Mako like they used to do in the old SOLDIER program, but her levels aren't nearly as high. You guys found her...do you have any ideas?"  
  
Reno had been listening quietly during the whole update and was taken a little off guard by her direct inquiry. He didn't know if he should tell anyone else about what they saw in the underground lab. He thought about what Elena reported to them as they looked around the lab.  
  
/ "...the mako enhanced solution they're in was made to preserve their bodies to the fullest." /  
  
Well, he didn't have to tell her everything...just enough to help his mother if he could.  
  
"She was in a preserving solution with some Mako."  
  
"You mean something like formaldehyde?"  
  
"I'm pretty sure it wasn't anything like that. Just a Mako solution."  
  
"Well, whatever was in it, she doesn't seem to be suffering any lasting affects from it other than the Mako in her system. She should even regain consciousness by tomorrow if she remains stable."  
  
Reno pulled a chair up beside the bed and took one of his mother's hands in his own.  
  
"I'll be in the main office if you need anything sir. Please notify us if she wakes up."  
  
Reno nodded in affirmative as he squeezed his mother's hand. It had been so long since he'd held her hand...  
  
It was pretty warm and soft against his fingers.  
  
The only source of light was the small desk lamp Jean had been using before she left. In the dim light, Reno noticed her face wasn't as pale as it had been a few hours ago. He glanced at a digital clock on the desk. It was going on eight thirty. The day sure had gone by quickly.  
  
He idly smoothed back her hair. He didn't know what to do with himself. After twenty years he was with his mother again and he didn't know what to do.  
  
/ Here's a crazy idea: you could let her sleep.../  
  
That was a thought but he was anxious to speak with her.  
  
"C'mon mom. Wake up and give me a smile.."  
  
There was no response as he expected.  
  
::sigh:: "That's ok then. I can wait...it'll be worth it."  
  
He folded his arms on the bed and rested his head on top of them. All he had to do now was wait.  
  
  
  
Tifa idly sipped her hot chocolate and watched it swirl around in her cup. She had only been in the cafe of Reeve Power Co, or the RPC cafe as employees called it, one time. She had to admit their drinks were pretty good. The hot chocolate she was drinking at the moment tasted suspiciously close the kind her mother used to make her back in Nibelheim.   
  
Not that she was complaining.  
  
She couldn't wait to take a hot shower. He shoulders and upper arms were sore from her lengthy climb up and down the tunnel. Cloud agreed to take the train back to the bar and pick a few things for them like come clothes. Elena had simply showed them where their rooms were and left for her own apartment. Now she was bored, tired, and sore.   
  
The brunette folded her arms on the table and rested her head on them. Now that she had loads of time to herself, her thoughts wandered off to Reno and his mother. How she felt the pain in his eyes when his mother fell from the tank and landed in his arms. She couldn't imagine the anguish in seeing one's own mother suspended in a tank like some freak specimen, stripped of her human dignity.   
  
Her own mother passed away when she didn't recover from a bite wound. She couldn't remember all of the details but she was on a picnic with her mom and dad at M. Nibel when a herd of Sleeples attacked them. Her dad made her run while they tried to distract them but they put a sleep spell on him and bit her mother twice. Tifa had run back to the town to get help but all they could do was scare away the rest before they injured her father as well.   
  
At least Tifa could say her mother's cause of death was common. Reno's mother, on the other hand, was imprisoned and forgotten in that horrid tube.   
  
/I wonder how she's doing... /  
  
Tifa finished her drink and left a few gil on the table. Cloud wouldn't be back for another hour at least. The cafe was deserted except for two waitresses behind the counter talking quietly and putting away some glasses. They hadn't been much company for the last twenty minutes...why should they be now.  
  
She left the cafe and headed around the corner. From down the hall she could see a faint light gracing the hallway in front of her. It was coming from her destination so she followed it. When she got to Reno's mother's room she stood in the doorway unable to move. There was Reno, head resting on the bed as he sat in an armless waiting chair. He appeared to be sleeping from his breathing.   
  
/Aw, who would have thought.../ He looked so peaceful...  
  
She stayed where she was, not wanting to wake him but in his guarded repose, he sensed her presence and woke with a little jump.   
  
He didn't say anything at first...just watched her curiously. She offered him a shy smile and came over to the bed. His gaze morphed into that of suspicion as he followed her harmless movements.  
  
"How is he doing?" The question was harmless enough. He even picked up traces of unfeigned concern. Yet, he still felt the need hold back a little.  
  
"She's resting."  
  
"Oh."   
  
/Not really in the mood for conversation. I should have gone to Rude...nah. He's just as bad. /  
  
Then she tried from another direction.  
  
"She's very beautiful... " she began with uncertainty. "She looks so much like you."  
  
At first she didn't think he would say anything. He studied her eyes a moment and replied almost inaudibly.  
  
"Yeah..."  
  
/He isn't making this easy... /  
  
She was running out of appropriate things to ask him but then she had an idea.  
  
"What is her name?"  
  
It took him a while to answer but he didn't seem to be having trouble recalling the name...he could never forget it. He was deciding whether or not he should tell her.  
  
"Giovanna. Giovanna Hstadin"  
  
Tifa was proud having finally coaxed more than three syllables out of him. However, she was wracking her brain for more ways to wangle a conversation out of him. She didn't need search long when Reno tensed in his chair causing it to squeak a little in protest. Tifa looked to his mother in time to see her slowly lift her eyelids.   
  
It was like opening a jewelry box to reveal a pair of studded emerald earrings. They, like Aeris', held a natural glow except they weren't they same resplendent green but a shade of aqua.   
  
She blinked several times in an attempt to clear her foggy vision then glanced around the room. There wasn't much light but the smallest amount assaulted her sensitive irises. Tifa turned the lamp towards the wall to ward off some of its light.  
  
"Where am I?" Her voice was severely parched and weak. The question was addressed to both of them but Tifa didn't want to intrude. Reno bravely took the floor.  
  
"You're in a clinic. You've been unconscious for quite some time..."  
  
He waited nervously for her to say something but she just stared into his eyes. He couldn't hold her gaze for long and adverted his line of vision to the bedpost. He could still feel her studying him with her eyes. Then he felt her warm hands on his face. He closed his eyes waiting for the revelation to finally hit her. Her soft hands tenderly felt the smooth skin of his scars and gently turned his head from one side to the other.  
  
"How can...who..."  
  
Tifa, feeling drastically out of place grabbed a Styrofoam cup from the cabinet under the desk and went to fill it with water from the marble water fountain in the hall. Reno and Giovanna were alone for the moment.  
  
"You were found hundreds of feet beneath this building in some sort of underground lab. You've been out the whole afternoon. How do you feel?"  
  
"Like I know you..."  
  
She certainly wasn't making his job easy.  
  
"...Yes. You were apparently trapped in that lab for over twenty years."  
  
/Here's the biggy... /  
  
"I'm Reno...your son."  
  
She began shaking her head and her eyebrows narrowed in confusion.  
  
"No...my son is home waiting for me. I have to go to him...he needs me."  
  
He didn't say anything. He told her with his eyes that he was telling the truth.  
  
Tifa came in with the water and Giovanna gladly quenched her thirst. Then she continued in a stronger voice.  
  
"I must go to my son..."  
  
"I telling you the truth. I am your son. Please believe me..."  
  
She searched his eyes for signs of untruth but only found sorrow.  
  
/But my little boy...my little Reno... /  
  
Her hands were on his face once again. This time they both closed their eyes as she wondered over the smooth skin of his face.  
  
The revelation sunk in. It was her son...her heart told her so and she couldn't believe otherwise. Tears slowly streaked her face as she excepted the truth.  
  
/I've missed his whole life. I wasn't there... /  
  
He wiped the tears from her face with the back of his hand.  
  
"I've missed you..."  
  
She let out a sob but gave him a heavy smile.  
  
"I know."  
  
Tifa knew she should leave. Her eyes were moist as well. She should find the doctor to let him know that one of the patients was finally awake.  
  
She slipped out unnoticed and took her time finding the main clinic office. Reno needed some time alone with her. They had the rest of their lives to catch up on each other even though it would be both a painful and joyful task. It would be tough but if anyone could do it, Reno would be the one.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Author's Cackle:  
  
Kinda lengthy...  
This was a pretty calm chapter but I just had to get Reno's mom up. The next update may be a while. I have 4 tests/quizzes this week. I'll try to get the next part up in about two weeks or so...maybe before then.  
  
Keep checkin for more and let me know what you think!!  
  
  
  
  
  
Wanna name the chapters?   
Aim here: drunkpoodle@yahoo.com  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	7. VII

  
  
  
Chapter 7  
  
Reno had never slept as peacefully as he did that night. After the doctor came and examined his mother he told Reno to let her rest but when he left the two stayed up talking for another hour. He did most of the talking while she asked him questions...some he did his best to avoid.   
  
After he finally went back to his quarters he was so giddy he didn't know if he could sleep. But the moment his head made contact with a goose-feather pillow he was out.  
  
When he woke the next morning, he showered and put on an outfit similar to the previous one. He couldn't get it out of his head.  
  
/I talked with my mom for the first time in over...twenty...years. /  
  
His stomach let out a little roar to be fed. Well, food could wait. He had to speak with her again. He had to check on her again before he did anything else today. It was just too good to be true. His mom was recovering just fine, their talk had been positive for the most part, and she seemed to except him.  
  
/hope things stay that way... /  
  
Reno made his way back down to the clinic for obvious reasons. Cloud and Tifa were further down the hall speaking with Dr. Naid. When he reached his mother's room and was disappointed to find her still sleeping. His mouth drooped into a slight frown.  
  
Well, what did he expect? She needed more sleep than he did and still was recovering from her preserved state of death.  
  
He came up beside her bed and kissed her forehead softly. With a final smile he left to get some breakfast. He stopped in his tracks when a little idea came to him.   
  
Hadn't they brought up another woman yesterday?  
  
Now that he thought about it, he hadn't given the other woman any thought or attention at all the previous day. He had been pretty caught up in the safety of his mother. Who wouldn't be?  
  
He glanced down the hall to see that Cloud and Tifa had vanished, probably into Dr. Naid's office. Well, it couldn't hurt to check in on her, right?  
  
He turned on heel and walked cautiously into the other woman's room. She was sessile except for the slow rising and falling of her chest. He stood at the foot of her bed for a moment, examining her for the first time. The only thing he could think to describe her was *nice*.  
  
Her face was a bit pale but her cheeks were tinted a rosy pink in some areas. Her ebony hair spilled around her like inky puddles...a sharp contrast to the stark white clinical sheets. Her hair looked a lot like Tifa's. It was silky and very lengthy. To Reno, Tifa's hair seemed so untouchable, like everything else about her. The one thing he loved about Tifa, other than her hypnotic breast size, was her hair and how incredibly soft it appeared. But he learned a hard lesson from Tifa that her hair, along with the rest of her body was off limits.  
  
Well, this was different. The woman was asleep and this was probably as close to Tifa's luxurious locks as he was going to get. He took a handful of her hair and felt it carefully with his fingers. He allowed it to spill through the spaces between fingers and fall back to the bed.   
  
It was incredibly soft. He had the sudden urge to run his hands through all of her hair. Before he could stop himself his hands had developed minds of their own and were reaching for more of the gorgeous locks. Reno had a gut feeling that he was doing something forbidden. But he couldn't stop himself.  
  
As it turned out...  
  
  
  
...he didn't have to.  
  
  
"What the hell are you doing!?"  
  
Reno didn't realize Cloud and Tifa were standing in the doorway.  
  
"What's it to you?" he replied hotly.  
  
"Don't...you...touch...her, " Cloud threatened through clenched teeth.  
  
"Why don't you bring your coward ass over here and make me, *freak*? "  
  
If there was one thing Reno hated, it was being told what to do...  
  
...by anyone from AVALANCHE, save Tifa.  
  
Cloud slid the Ultima Weapon from his back and Reno brandished the Electromog Rod. Tifa looked between them with worry.  
  
"Will you two cut it out!" she stepped between them to stop their advances. "This is hardly the place or time." She turned to Reno. "Dr. Naid went over the results of the blood test with us."  
  
"So? What he say?"  
  
"If you would calm yourself I'd tell you." Tifa hadn't seen what Reno was doing and why Cloud was so mad. She shrugged it off as Cloud being snippy again and picking a fight.  
  
"Hell, I'm calm. That prick ain't enough to break my cool."  
  
"What did you just call m-"  
  
"Enough!!" Tifa was slowly losing her patients with the two. They were acting like toddlers and now wasn't the time.   
  
She let out a breath of tension.  
  
"Listen, the doctor said he'd never seen her blood type before and thought we should ask her some questions when she wakes up. "  
  
"What do you mean, 'never seen her blood type before'? "  
  
"Well, it's definitely not a human blood type."  
  
Reno sank into a contemplative silence. If she wasn't human, what could she be?  
  
He took a suspicious glance at the woman in question as if expecting her to have four arms and a pair of fangs. She looked human enough on the outside.   
  
What non-human looked human?   
  
The only thing he could come up with was...  
  
"Hey, I think she's waking up!" Cloud exclaimed and they all crowded around her bed.  
  
She coughed a little and breathed in deep. Her eyes shot open a bit unexpectantly. They were a rich shade of hazel and held the same inner glow as Giovanna's. It was like sun shinning through a glistening morsel of amber.  
  
"How do you feel? " Cloud asked.  
  
She searched for her voice and it came quiet and timid.  
  
"Ok, I guess..."  
  
"Can you tell us your name, " Tifa inquired hopefully.  
  
"...Yeah. I'm Casca. Can you tell me where I am?"  
  
"You're in a clinic in Midgar. You were found in a coma underground, " Cloud answered for them.  
  
She looked into all of their faces one at a time but none of them seemed familiar.  
  
"Who are you?"  
  
"I'm Tifa. This is Reno and Cloud."  
  
Casca digested the names but they still weren't familiar.  
  
"Thank you for taking care of me but where is my sister? I should tell her where I am so she won't worry about me."  
  
"We'll be glad to get your sister for you, " Tifa said. "What's her name? "  
  
"I usually call her Nana," she began with a reminiscent smile, "but her name is Ifalna...Ifalna Ghast. She should be up in Icicle Village with her..."  
  
She paused when she noticed the horrified expressions on Cloud and Tifa's faces. Reno just let out a burdened sigh.  
  
"What?"  
  
/Do they know what I am? Maybe they hate the Cetra like the rest of the world. Ifalna I need you... / She suddenly wanted her older sister there with her...she always knew what to do.  
  
They all looked at each other, debating who should do the explaining. Reno obviously wasn't about to say anything. Cloud and Tifa stared at each other with distinct indecision. Casca looked on in confusion and awaited their explanation.  
  
Tifa let out a sigh and turned back to Casca.  
  
"Well..."  
  
"No, Tifa. I should, " Cloud interrupted. "I don't know how to tell you this but...::sigh:: we believe you've been underground for over twenty years. Your sister and her husband were murdered many years ago by Professor Hojo....we're so sorry..." he ended weakly.  
  
Her amber eyes bore into their souls, praying for it all not to be true. But there would be none of the Planet's mercy today. She burst into tears, unable to hold the solid block of grief. Tifa was at her side trying to console her but the tears wouldn't let up. Tifa could think of nothing that would bring comfort to the sobbing Cetra so she let her cry on her shoulder.   
  
She sobbed out more dreadful questions.  
  
"What about my niece? Is Aeris ok? They didn't hurt her did they?"  
  
"Aeris...Aeris died about five years ago at the hands of Sephiroth. She died saving the Planet..."  
  
This brought on a new set of tears that wouldn't let up.  
  
"I never even got to meet her...I planned to do so much with..."  
  
Tifa tried to ease her pain. "Aeris was a wonderful person. She gave her life for all of us."  
  
Cloud excused himself to get the doctor and Reno left to go find Rude to get breakfast. He didn't want to be a part of someone else's drama. As he continued down the hall, he shook his head to clear away the soggy emotions that were building up in his throat.  
  
That was too close...  
  
There was just something about an angel's tears that could dangerously produce a few of his own. He never cried, even when he heartlessly murdered entire families at the command of President ShinRa. He couldn't remember the last time he shed a tear for anyone and he wanted it to stay that way.  
  
  
  
Lao-Anne listened at the door of Casca's room. Dressed in a stolen nurse's uniform, she hadn't drawn any attention so far and she preferred it stay that way.  
  
/So she's the Cetra for the experiment...I should get her first. /  
  
She leaned over slightly to get a quick view of the room. On opposite sides of the bed were Reno and Cloud with Tifa at the foot of the bed.  
If she could get in there with them gone she could administer the hypodermic solution and get her out.  
  
Hmmm...  
  
She didn't have time to think when Cloud's footsteps could be heard nearing the door. She hurried away from the door and down the hall as quickly as she could. She was almost at the main office when Cloud called to her.  
  
"Hey! Nurse, wait!"  
  
/Damn...if he suspects me... /  
  
When he caught up with her he spoke again, "Have you seen Dr. Naid? I should tell him the patient is up."  
  
"Oh um...I haven't seen him yet. I just started my shift...maybe you should try his office."  
  
"Ok...thanks."  
  
He continued down the hall and around the corner to Dr. Naid's office. When he was out of sight she let out a sigh of relief. He hadn't suspected anything.  
  
Lao-Anne watched the redheaded Turk leave the room next. That left Tifa and the Cetra. The doctor would be there any minute.  
  
Her little plan would have to wait until later, perhaps tonight when Cetra was alone. She could get the other girl too...  
  
/Maybe that's too may at one time. /   
  
Well, she had all day to plan it. She went back to the main office to pick up the charts on the women. She also had to get some blood from them for her studies. She could imagine her success already.  
  
  
  
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Author's notes:  
  
I'm glad to say it didn't take two weeks to finish this part. I really didn't want to keep you guys waiting. The next part shouldn't take so long either. This one was a bit short in my opinion but I try to write more next time.  
  
As always, reviews comments/questions are welcome!  
  
Mail: drunkpoodle@yahoo.com  
  
:::::Drunkpoodle:::::  
  
  



	8. VIII

  
  
Chapter 8  
  
  
  
Lao Anne had just finished drawing blood from Giovanna when Reno came in holding a white paper bag. Giovanna smiled at Reno and propped herself up in bed. She took her vile and hurried away leaving Reno to glare at her a bit suspiciously.  
  
"What did *she* want?" Reno asked incredulously.  
  
"Just to take some of blood. Don't worry hun...one little needle isn't going to hurt me."  
  
"Yeah..." he replied still a bit suspicious. The black-haired woman wasn't one of the nurses from last night. But he tried to dismiss it as him being overprotective.  
  
Giovanna changed the subject. "So what's in the bag?"  
  
"Oh just a little breakfast for you, " he answered with a sly grin.  
  
She took the bag and peered inside. She gasped as a heartfelt smile spread across her face.  
  
"These ar...were your favorite muffins since you were three."  
  
"Banana nut raspberry."  
"Banana nut raspberry," they both exclaimed with some excitement.  
  
"They're still my favorite, mom."  
  
Giovanna was surprised that her son had changed so much since she'd last laid eyes on him but something so trivial was still the same. They talked as she ate the muffins.  
  
"How did you sleep last night?" he asked.  
  
"Just fine knowing my baby was ok after all."  
  
Reno blushed a bit. He hadn't been referred to as *a* baby in ages. The whores he fooled around with had called him baby out of the moment or while trying to earn a wild night.  
  
She continued after swallowing, "I can't believe they sent you to that horrible orphanage for all those years. I'll make all of this up to you, I promise, Reno."  
  
"The only thing I want you to do is get well so we can pick up where we left off." He sat down on the edge of her bed slowly. "Besides, a real son wouldn't have given up on you, " he added, sort of under his breath. But his mother heard it and frowned.  
  
"We'll make this work, sweetie. It will take some getting used to on both of our parts but it will work." Another warm smile appeared on her face again as she took hold of his hand. "Rule number one: never mutter under your breath to your mother...they always hear you."  
  
This brought a real smile to his face. For the time being Reno actually felt as if this *was* going to work.   
  
A little while later Dr. Naid came in with Giovanna's progress reports. He explained that she had been in stable condition since last night and hadn't found any long lasting affects.  
  
"We want to keep you another night just to be on the safe side but if all is well, you can go home tomorrow morning."  
  
He took one last look at the monitors and went next door to give Casca her update. Reno kissed his mother goodbye on the cheek and left to go find Rude and Elena.  
  
He found them in Reeve's office discussing the equipment found in the underground lab. Elena and Rude turned when Reno came in. They both held the same question in their eyes.  
  
"How is she doing?" they both voiced simultaneously.  
  
"Whoa whoa! How about 'good morning Reno. Did you sleep well?" he replied sarcastically.  
  
"Well it's a good question, Reno, "Reeve spoke.  
  
Reno took a seat on a small sofa against the wall.   
  
"The doc said she's stable and doing good so...tomorrow morning she can probably come home."  
  
"That's great news, "Reeve stated.  
  
"Yeah, great. But what "home" are we talking about?" Elena asked.  
  
Reno shrugged indifferently. "Well, I figured she could move in with me considering..."  
  
"You've got to be kidding Reno! That apartment isn't fit for a Bandersnatch, not to mention your own MOTHER!!"  
  
"Listen Elly, my place isn't that bad. It may be a little...confused, but I can fix it up by tomorrow morning."  
  
"Reno's right, Elena. Cut him some slack," Rude said.  
  
"All my 'partment needs is a little Mr. Clean."  
  
"Yeah ok. We'll see tomorrow morning, " Elena challenged.  
  
"You're on..."  
  
"Guys, there are more important things at hand, "Reeve intervened. "Rude and Elena are going back down to get some info. You want to help?"  
  
"Nah. According to Elena my apartment isn't "fit" for my mom. I have some work to do. I should be back in a few hours though."  
  
"You mean a few days, " Elena muttered under her breath.  
  
Reno pretended not to hear. "Good luck down there. I'll see ya in a few."  
  
Reno made one last stop with his mother to let her know he'd be gone and drove home.   
  
  
ØØØØØØ  
  
  
Cloud and Tifa looked up from their places on the sides of Casca's bed. At her request, they had been telling her all they knew about Aeris and what kind of a person she was. This was the only way that she could know Aeris although it hurt. Cloud and Tifa mentioned a Elmyra Gainsboro. If she had taken care of Aeris as a child then Casca just had to meet her, and thank her for taking care of her niece.  
  
Dr. Naid came in with a report similar to Giovanna's.  
  
"Good morning, folks. Miss Ristine, you've been doing really well. Blood pressure's normal, life signs are strong and stable. Just like Miss Hstadin next door, we'll keep you one more night to be safe and if all is well you can go home tomorrow morning."  
  
Casca let a sad smile grace her features. It was good that she could go home but where was "home"? If what they said about her being underground for twenty years was true, her home probably wasn't even there anymore.   
  
After the doctor left Casca voiced her thoughts. "I know this is a lot to ask after all you've done, but could you guys put me up at an inn until I get back on my feet again. I really have no where else to go."  
  
"Nonsense," Tifa waved it off dismissively. "No relative of Aeris is staying at an inn while our doors are always open to her. We don't have much room but you can stay with us and when you're ready we'll take you to see Elmyra."  
  
Cloud nodded in agreement.   
  
"Thank you so much. Aeris has chosen her friends very well."  
  
  
ØØØØØØØ  
  
  
Reno closed the door to his apartment and surveyed the mess. It wasn't all that bad. Nothing Reno couldn't handle. He took off the jacket to his uniform and hung it on the doorknob. With a sigh he trudged into his living room. The carpet was pretty dusty and dirty magazines littered the couch. As he took another step forward he heard the cackle of a crushed beer can.   
  
Looking around there were smudges on the pale blue walls, some clothes on the floor near the TV, and a box of condemns on the coffee table. It would be a good idea to star here and work his way to the other rooms.  
  
He went to the kitchen for a garbage bag. After collecting the beer cans and bottles he tied up the full bag. He stacked all of his precious magazines into a cardboard box and placed it on the shelf in the hallway closet. He got another bag for the paper and empty bags of chips. With a damp sponge he wiped the smudges from the walls and windows. Finally, he brandished a Dirt Devil and vacuumed every inch of carpet.  
  
Now that wasn't so hard. But his bedroom was next.  
  
He started by changing the royal blue sheets on his bed to a pear green. After gathering all the loose clothes in his room in a hamper he trashed and miscellaneous junk. The shower in his bathroom was a bit grimy. Grey soap scum hugged the crevices between the baby blue tiles. Reno turned his nose up in digust.  
  
Grudgingly he grabbed a sponge from beneath the sink and some powder detergent and went to work. By the time he cleaned the whole bathroom it was well past two o'clock. He hadn't even cleaned out the spare room for his mother yet!  
  
He took a quick beer brake and headed to the back of his apartment to a pine colored door. This room was what he usually used for a storage area. Most of his junk was here with years of collected weapons. There were boxes of anonymous items he didn't even remember where he'd acquired half of this junk. Well, it was back to the kitchen for more trash bags. He ended up trashing everything except his weapons, which he also stored in the hall closet next to his box of magazines. He also vacuumed this room and when he finished it was goo as new. Only there was one problem: no furniture.  
  
He hated decorating. But he had to make this room livable.   
  
/Maybe Elena can help me... /  
  
That thought ended when the thought of her sneering at him for not being able to do it himself. No. Elena would be the very last person he asked for help. Rude might be an option but he was helping Elena back at headquarters. Not that Rude had any interior design skills anyway. He had seen his apartment...everything was either white or black.  
  
He guffawed as Cloud's name entered his mind.  
  
/Yeah right. /  
  
Well, Tifa was the only reasonable choice. He didn't mind her company and she probably had some taste. Reno grabbed his PHS.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Hey Tifa..."  
  
"Reno!? What do you want?" she asked a bit annoyed.  
  
"I need your help with a little something."  
  
"And what might that be?" she sounded suspicious. "If it's the least bit perverted I'm hanging up and changing my PHS number."  
  
"No no, nothing like that...sheesh. My mom's comin home tomorrow and I need help with her room."  
  
"I'm not your private interior decorator, Reno."  
  
"I know...just help me. I figured you'd know somthin',"  
  
"Cloud and I are kind of busy helping Reeve."  
  
"Please, Tifa? C'mon," he pleaded with her.  
  
She let out a defeated sigh, "Ok, I'll help you."  
  
"Thanks Tif."  
  
When Tifa came to his apartment she was stunned at the order of it all. She went to the back room turned to Reno with aggravation.   
  
"Where's the furniture Reno?"  
  
"That's why I need your help."  
  
"I'm not doing all of the work for you. I just thought you needed some advice." She turned and left the room.  
  
"Where are you going?"  
  
"WE are going to Andy's Department Store to get your mom some furniture."  
  
Reno followed her out with a grin.  
  
/She's actually going to help me. /  
  
  
  
Ø)(Ø)(Ø)(Ø)(Ø)(Ø)(Ø)(Ø)(Ø)(Ø)(Ø)(Ø  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	9. XI

  
  
  
Chapter 9  
  
  
  
Tifa shifted her weight from her left foot to her right as she watched the workers load the last piece of furniture onto their truck. Hours had passed since she and Reno had first stepped through the revolving doors of the furniture store. She hadn't realized they would be shopping that long and hoped everything was ok back at headquarters.  
  
Other than being a tad worried about Cloud and the others, Tifa didn't mind the lengthy shopping session. She couldn't say the same for Reno, unfortunately. After the first twenty minutes had passed and they were still combing through aisles of beds, Reno would have been content to just purchase the first twin-sized bed that he saw. Tifa, however, explained that this was his mother's room they were decorating, and she deserved the perfect queen-sized bed...  
  
  
...even if it took most of an hour to select one.  
  
  
After they had chosen a bed Reno was ready to leave but Tifa had just gotten started. Before the session was over she (with his money, of course) had purchased a bureau and nightstand set along with some shelves. On their way out she picked up some fresh linen for his mother and called it a day or well, night.   
  
On the way back to Reno's apartment Reno phoned headquarters to find out what everyone had been up to. Tifa sat in the passenger seat stiff as a board as Reno made one impossibly sharp turn after another. He narrowly missed wrecking dozens of parked vehicles but he never lost his cool. He just leaned back in the driver's seat, one hand on the wheel and the other clutching his PHS to his left ear. Tifa gripped the edges of her seat until her knuckles were white. She was flung towards the dashboard but halted by the weak efforts of the black seatbelt across her torso. Finally calm enough to speak, Tifa slowly turned to face Reno with murder in her wine-colored eyes.  
  
"Will you put...the ::damn:: PHS...away before you get us killed!?" she demanded through clenched teeth.  
  
He scanned the road ahead of them with mild disinterest, "If you don't like my driving, Tifa no one is stopping you from walking."  
  
"I'll be lucky if I ::can:: walk after this ride."  
  
One of Reno's famous smirks found its place on his face, "Funny, you aren't the first woman to have said something like that to me..."  
  
Tifa rolled her eyes with a defeated sigh, "Why do feel as though I wont be the last?"  
  
Surprisingly, when the light turned green Reno didn't squash the gas pedal as he had been doing. For once, Tifa noticed she wasn't slammed into the black fabric of her seat when they went forward.  
  
They pulled into the lot of his apartment and Tifa unbuckled her seatbelt with shaky hands.  
  
"You can relax, sweetheart. I wasn't going to crash."  
  
"How could I have thought otherwise?" Tifa replied with nervous sarcasm.  
  
A few moments later the furniture truck pulled in after them and parked near the building's wall. Tifa stared dumbfounded as the driver and worker climbed out seemingly fine and undisturbed at having to follow Reno's treacherous lead through Midgar traffic. She had to commend them; she couldn't keep up with Reno's driving and she had been *in* the car.   
  
Reno took over the unloading process, pointing and ordering the men about. Their purchases were in the apartment and arranged about the room in record timing. Tifa admired the now furnished spare room with pride.  
  
"Now this room is ready for your mom."  
  
"Took us long enough," he muttered with agitation.  
  
Tifa checked her watch.  
  
"I should get back to headquarters," Tifa stated wearied. She started for the door but stopped. She turned to Reno with a smirk. "What? No 'thank you'?"  
  
Reno approached her with a sly grin, "I don't do verbal gratitude..."  
  
He neared her until they were inches apart. Keeping his suspiciously hungry gaze at her eyes he continued speaking, his voice dangerously low, "I tend to be a little...physical when it comes to expressing my gratitude."  
  
Tifa drew herself to her full height and glared back at him defiantly, "The only physical contact between you and I would be me capping your perverted rump back to headquarters."  
  
"Was that a threat Tifa?"  
  
"Was yours an invitation?"  
  
"Interpret it whichever way suits you." He took a lingering step back to allow her a path to the door.  
  
She turned smartly, allowing the ends of her hair to grace his arm. At the front door Reno stopped her with a chuckle. "Don't you need a ride back?"  
  
"Not from you, Reno."  
  
His eyebrows narrowed slightly with confusion. If he had offered any other woman a ride they'd be in the passenger seat before he finished the sentence.  
  
"Well, good luck on the train then."  
  
Tifa closed the front door and continued out of the building. Rolling her eyes she let out a sigh, "At least with the train I have a standing chance of getting to the headquarters in one piece."  
  
  
  
::O::::O::::O::::O::::O::::O::::O::  
  
  
  
Cloud reached across Casca's bed to tuck her in.   
  
"You're going to love Elmyra. She lives over in Kalm. After breakfast we can head over there first thing tomorrow."  
  
"I guess I should be excited," Casca replied sorrowfully. "The closest thing to Aeris I'll ever know is her mother. But I still feel so empty about all of this."  
  
Cloud took one of her hands and gave it a squeeze, "You're going to have to be strong, Casca. Aeris was, she proved that to the entire planet."  
  
"You are right, Cloud. This is just going to take some time."  
  
"You get some rest." Cloud gave her a comforting smile. "We want you to be perfect when the doctors look you over tomorrow."  
  
Casca allowed herself a small chuckle, "Good night, Cloud."  
  
" G' night."   
  
Cloud closed the door behind him with a soft click and made his way to Giovanna's door. He opened it quietly and stuck his head inside. The room was dark except for the dim light from the desk lamp. He closed the door back and headed aimlessly down the hall.  
  
Where was Tifa?  
  
She should have been back by now. The hallways were only lit by a few lights on the wall instead of the fluorescent ones overhead. Reeve was most likely in his office. Rude had taken Elena back to her apartment over an hour ago to help her decipher the notes from the underground software. Cloud had helped the Turks bring up dozens of discs and whatever Elena thought might be of help.   
  
He was pretty ready to end the day but refused to go to sleep until he was sure Tifa was back safe. An angry frown entered the picture. He should have gone with Tifa. He knew letting Tifa go with Reno alone was probably a bad idea. Reno couldn't be trusted. If he could press button to drop the plate on thousands of innocent people with a clear conscience, what was there to stop him from hurting Tifa. A certain rage always boiled within Cloud when Reno sent his hungry gaze in Tifa's direction. Reno would pay if he was responsible for Tifa ever being hurt.   
  
Or maybe Cloud was just overreacting. Tifa was definitely capable of handling herself. Besides, Tifa had excellent judgment. She had proved herself of being able to handle Reno.  
  
He would just feel better when Tifa got back, Cloud decided. As a matter fact, he would just call to check on her. That would take care of his worries. And that's just what he did after pulling his PHS from his back pocket.  
  
  
  
::O::::O::::O::::O::::O::::O::::O::  
  
  
  
Lao-Anne breathed a sigh of relief when Cloud closed the door to Giovanna's room. She rose from her hiding place behind the door and quietly approached the bed. Giovanna was still unconscious, thanks to her drug. Loa-Anne was lucky. She had administered the sedative just before she heard Cloud's footsteps. Now she had to get this woman out of the building.  
  
Lao-Anne fished for her PHS and expertly entered seven familiar digits.  
  
"H'lo?"  
  
"It's me, Cole. I've got her under, now I need you by the elevator waiting for me," she whispered calmly.  
  
"No problem...but which one?" Cole asked.  
  
"It's one on the first floor: 1C."  
  
"Ok. I'll head over there."  
  
"Good, but be quiet. We haven't drawn any attention and I want to keep it that way."  
  
"Alright alright! I'll be good."  
  
There was a soft beep as Cole hung up his extension, Lao-Anne doing the same. She stared at the sleeping woman for a moment, contemplating the best way to carry her to the elevator. Then she wrapped her in the sheet and slung her over her shoulder. Peering both ways, Loa-Anne made as much of a dash as she could towards the elevator. Once inside, she kept watching the elevator shaft parallel to hers hoping no one would get on.   
  
She made it to the first floor uneventfully and grinned when Cole's muscular form came into view. He effortlessly took Giovanna from her shoulders and led the way to the parking lot. They took their time ducking security cameras and made it to their car without raising alarm. Lao-Anne took the wheel and sped out of the parking lot towards her apartment grinning with confident satisfaction.  
  
  
  
::O::::O::::O::::O::::O::::O::::O::  
  
  
  
Tifa had just gotten off the train when her PHS beeped.   
  
"Hello?"  
  
"It's me, Cloud."  
  
"Hey, what's wrong?"  
  
"Nothing, I was just checking to see if everything was all right. You've been gone all day," Cloud explained with a note of concern.  
  
"Oh I'm fine. I'm walking towards HQ now. I should be there in ten minutes."  
  
"Where's Reno? I thought he was bringing you back." Cloud's voice was suspicious.  
  
"I decided not to ride back with him..."  
  
"Why? What did he do to you?" Cloud interrupted, his voice rising a bit.  
  
"He didn't do anything *to* me Cloud...relax. I just felt like taking the train. He should be there in a few minutes."  
  
"I swear if he did anything to hurt you, let me know and I'll take care of him."  
  
"I said nothing happened. Don't worry...that's my department," she added with a chuckle. "I'll see you in a few."  
  
Tifa hung up the PHS with a small smile. Cloud was so funny sometimes.  
  
  
::O::::O::::O::::O::::O::::O::  
  
  
Back at HQ a sneaky voice caught Cloud's attention.  
  
"You'll take care of who?"  
  
Cloud spun around to find Reno sauntering up to him with his nightstick casually slung over his shoulder. Cloud narrowed his fiery blue eyes.   
  
"Anyone who thinks they can hurt Tifa," he replied coolly.  
  
"Got someone in mind?" he challenged innocently.  
  
"Oh I can think of a few people with the tenacity to try something."  
  
Reno brushed pass Cloud with confidence. "Keep thinking Strife," he muttered almost inaudibly.  
  
Cloud stood in the hallway glaring poison daggers at Reno as he opened the door to Giovanna's room. He had just turned and continued down the hall when he felt more than heard the door to Giovanna's room slam. The hairs on his neck stood on end as the atmosphere was touched with the electricity of Reno's nightstick.  
  
"Where...is...she?" he growled from down the hall.  
  
Reno was steadily approaching Cloud with his nightstick charged and held away from him. His eyes were glowing with the fire of his anger. For a second, Reno had made Cloud more nervous than he had ever been.  
  
"Where is who?" he asked with as much vehemence as he could muster.  
  
"My MOTHER DAMMIT!" Reno's words echoed of the walls and settled on Cloud's spine.  
  
"How the hell should I know? She was in her room the last time I saw her."  
  
Reno was almost upon him now. Cloud unsheathed his sword and took a step back. He hadn't intended to fight Reno but if that's what Reno was looking for...  
  
"You are lying. If you don't tell me where she is Cloud you're going to wish you *did* perish at the reactor in Nibelheim."  
  
Cloud tried to meet his gaze with as much intensity but he was confused. He really didn't know what Reno was talking about. First of all, he hadn't even realized Giovanna was Reno's mother. Now she had disappeared? He hadn't heard anything. How would he know where she was?  
  
"Maybe she went to the bathroom? Did...you...check...in...there?" he asked sarcastically slow.  
  
Reno didn't answer. He raised his nightstick in preparation to fry Cloud. Cloud held his sword down in front of him, ready for anything Reno could throw at him. Something just wasn't right.  
  
"I didn't touch her, Reno. But if you're willing to fight me rather than look for her, be my guest."  
  
Reno didn't move. He continued to glare at Cloud until he could calm himself. Then he dropped his arm and took off in a jog towards Dr. Naid's office. Cloud stood there trying to figure out was going on. He sheathed his sword and took off in the same direction as Reno, stopping to look in on the sleeping Casca. Something was definitely amiss.  
  
  
  
===============  
  
  
  
Author's Notes:  
  
  
The soup is now simmering! Mwuhahahaaa!!  
All my projects are finished now...thank Odin. I have finals this week and some of the school days end early so I'll try to get some more writing done. Thanx for hanging in there gang.  
  
Questions (-:  :-) Comments = drunkpoodle@yahoo.com  
  
  



	10. X

  
  
  
Chapter 10  
  
  
  
  
Tifa was surprised to see someone still at the front desk when she entered the ShinRa building. It was pretty late when she got back, way past nine o'clock. The lady appeared to be straightening up the desk before leaving. She smiled at Tifa as she walked by.  
  
Tifa pushed a round button beside the elevator and it glowed a soft blue at her touch. It opened almost immediately after she had pressed the button and she stepped on. When the glossy metal doors shut a weary sigh escaped her lips.   
  
  
A steamy shower and a pickle sandwich would be quite pleasing at the moment...  
  
  
  
Tifa never really had to tolerate Reno for more than a couple of hours before. At the bar he was never functional longer than an hour before Rude had to drag him out to his car. After the day's Renofied shopping trip, Tifa was more than a little tired.   
  
Leaning back against the transparent walls of the elevator, the day's events finally begin to stack themselves on Tifa's weary form. It was early afternoon when she left HQ to help Reno (why she even bothered was still her question of the day.) Now it was nearing ten o'clock and all she had to show for the day was agitated nerves and an empty stomach. Reno hadn't even thanked her.  
  
Her mouth drooped uncharacteristically into a frown. Dark clouds coated the smoky night sky of Midgar, foreshadowing the next day's forecast.   
  
  
/It will probably rain tomorrow, Tifa thought dismally./  
  
Tifa looked up when the elevator halted and chimed, signaling the entrance of another passenger.  
  
Reno...  
  
Just when she thought she was through dealing with the irritable redhead, he joined her on the elevator, his PHS pressed to his ear. He looked just as surprised to see her but the expected mischievous smirk was nowhere to be found.   
  
Reno glanced at her in what appeared like annoyance before pressing the correct floor for Reeve's office.   
  
What was biting him?  
  
Maybe he was angry because she refused a ride from him back to HQ...  
Somehow Tifa doubted that.  
  
Tifa was more than ready to voice her mental inquiry but figured it best to wait until he was done talking.   
  
"I don't know...Strife didn't know until I asked him where the hell she was."  
  
There was what sounded like Rude's phone-warped reply before Reno continued on in an exasperated tone.   
  
"He doesn't know either, nobody knows fucking anything!" he answered, throwing his free hand up in desperation. The action startled Tifa but she continued to wait and pretend to not pay attention to his conversation.  
  
"Yeah, I *better* get some damn answers."  
  
Rude replied something unintelligible from where Tifa stood.  
  
"Ok, you two can find me in Reeve's office."  
  
After Reno grumbled something in the way of a 'good bye' he snapped the PHS shut and shoved it in his pocket testily. He ran his slender fingers through his molten locks in what Tifa had come to recognize as frustration, then brought his fist down on the glass wall of the elevator so hard Tifa thought it would shatter.  
  
Damn bastards...couldn't let me have her back for two goddamn days.  
  
He closed his eyes, allowing the gentle hum of the elevator gears calm his seething anger.  
  
There was no way she was gone. He just got her back after twenty years. Life couldn't be that cruel...  
  
...or maybe it could.  
  
He was a skilled killer with no remorse...one of the best at what he did. What made him think for a second that fate should be any kinder to him than she was to his victims?  
  
A bitter smile formed on his lips.   
  
Reno, you deserve every ounce of dissension you get for what you've brought on others. Did you honestly think life was that sweet?  
  
  
I guess not...  
  
  
"Reno...?" Tifa's timid inquiry severed his mental battery. Caught up in his negative thoughts, he had pretty much forgotten Tifa was there. Startled, he turned to her.   
  
"What?" he replied with more annoyance than he intended.  
  
Tifa hesitated at the agitated reply but continued anyway. "What's wrong?"  
  
He glared at her a moment longer, still angry to have his thoughts interrupted. But he wasn't really mad at her, somehow he didn't think he would ever be angry with Tifa. He was more frustrated with himself than anything for not protecting his mother.  
  
He let out a long sigh of tension. "Sh...she's gone," he answered, confirming the devastating truth more to himself than to her.  
  
Tifa's brow creased in confusion, "Who is gone?"  
  
"Mo...Giovanna is gone... again." He spoke the last word under his breath.  
  
"Since when? I talked to Cloud on my way down and he didn't say anything was wrong."  
  
"I'm not sure...she was gone when I got here. Cloud was the only one here, but he doesn't know anything, he never does..."  
  
Tifa winced a little at his words. She already knew Reno seemed to harbor a natural hate for the blonde, and vise versa. The latest events probably didn't help the tense relationship.  
  
"What about Casca? Is she alright?"  
  
"What about her!?" he snapped suddenly.  
  
At the hurt look she held Reno turned away towards the elevator doors. He was being selfish and he knew it. He was worried beyond words about his mother but Casca still mattered. Reno tried to ignore the ache in his chest and guilt slowly made its way into his conscience, or lack there of...  
  
He kept his back to her as he answered much more calmly.  
  
"She's fine...they only took Giovanna."  
  
After measuring his response and ascertaining whether or not he was calm again, she spoke.  
  
"It couldn't have happened very long ago. We'll get her back," Tifa urged optimistically. She knew what Reno had to be going through.  
  
/If we don't get her back it will kill him.../ Tifa thought with worry.   
  
"With Strife as the only one here the bastards probably walked right past him. Damn goodfornothing..."  
  
"Reno, the blame game isn't going to solve this. Besides," she began shifting her weight from one hip to the other, "Whether you want to believe it or not, Cloud wouldn't have let anything happen to her purposely."  
  
"You don't understand," he started nearly inaudibly, "It isn't just Cloud. *I* was supposed to be there. *I* was supposed to protect her."  
  
The elevator chimed their arrival at the forty-seventh floor and Reno left without looking back at her. There was a split second of contemplation before Tifa followed him off. Hurrying after his long strides she caught up to him.  
  
"Reno..."  
  
"Drop it Tifa," he deadpanned before she could even attempt anything in the way of sympathy.  
  
He entered Reeve's office leaving her at the door.  
  
"This isn't your fault..." she whispered when he was out of hearing range.  
  
Lightning flickered threateningly within the smoky clouds outside.  
  
Tifa put a shaky hand through her hair.  
  
/Correction: It will probably storm...tonight./  
  
  
  
**  
  
///  
"Please Mommy? One more time?"  
  
"Reno hun, it's getting late..."  
  
"I only want to go down one more time. I'll be quick, I pwomise!" he begged.  
  
His mother let out a short sigh of defeat, "Ok, just one more..."  
  
"Yay!" he squealed, blissfully running back over to the moogle slide. She checked her watch impatiently as her son climbed the slide's ladder. It was nearing five o'clock. It grew dark very quickly in the slums, and now the shadows were returning.  
  
His high-pitched whoop of joy reached her ears as he went zooming down the metal slide. She went over to meet him on his way down and took his hand. He smiled up at her and she couldn't resist returning the action.  
  
"We'll come back soon, sweetie. Maybe even after work tomorrow...that is, if you're good for the sitter."  
  
He nodded fiercely, "Uh huh, I'll be real good!"  
  
"We'll see, Reno. We'll see..."  
///  
  
Her eyes flickered. Somewhere miles away there was a rhythmic beeping. She tried to lift her weighty eyelids and sharp white fluorescent light poured in...  
  
...and it hurt.  
  
Opening her eyes fully she was hit with the full blast of clinical white light. She blinked until her eyes adjusted some, then took in her surroundings.   
  
It wasn't her room at the clinic. Although the room was familiar in the sense that almost everything was white, there was something unsettling about it.  
  
For starters, she was lying on a hard metal dissection table. Her wrists and ankles were restrained tightly to the table.  
  
/How did I get here? /  
  
Well, where was *here*?  
  
The embryo of a headache was developing behind her eyes. That insistent beeping seemed to pound her skull as she wracked her brain for answers. The last thing she remembered was that black-haired nurse giving her a shot...of what, she couldn't remember being told. Then she blacked out almost instantly. Female intuition told her something was very wrong.  
  
"Hey Lao! She's up now!" a booming male voice startled her out of her thoughts and heightened the strength of her headache.  
  
There was the rhythmic clopping of high-heeled shoes and Giovanna strained her neck to see who it was. The footsteps stopped right behind her.  
  
"It's Lao-Anne," an impatient voice corrected. "It's about time she woke up."  
  
The clopping started again until she stood at Giovanna's side where she could see her.  
  
"Rise and shine Specimen B! We have a lot to do," she said with mock cheer.  
  
"Nurse?"  
  
Lao-Anne let out a short round of laughter that passed more as a cackle.  
  
"I was that convincing, huh? Sometimes I question my calling..." She turned away and went to look at a panel of monitors.   
  
"If you aren't a nurse then who are you and why did you bring me here?" she inquired to Lao-Anne's back.  
  
She didn't answer immediately, but collected a few printed papers and snapped them to a clipboard. She slowly made her way back to Giovanna's table without looking up from she was reading.  
  
"Aren't we a little demanding, Miss Hstadin?" She finally lifted her gaze from the papers and removed her wire-framed glasses. After giving the bridge of her thin nose a good massage she put them back on and looked at Giovanna. "You are here so that I can finished what my brother started. From the looks of these readings you are in great shape, so we can get started right away."  
  
Lao-Anne went over to a table against the wall and picked up a cotton ball and a rather large syringe of some pink substance. She made her way back over to the now wide-eyed Giovanna.  
  
"As far as names go," she began smiling sadistically at her, "you may address me as Professor Hojo.  
  
  
  
Author's Cackle:  
  
Well this one sure took me awhile to pull out the oven...sowwie. I was a little caught up in the first week of summer vacation. But now I'm back in gear and the next one won't take so long...hopefully. I've also busied myself with a little project: A WEB PAGE!! If ff.net goes on the fritz and you can't get to my stories you can read them there now. The link to it is on my profile page here at ff.net so feel free to stop by. It isn't finished yet, mind you.  
Enough yack...  
  
Thanx for the reviews!!  
~::DrunkpoOdle::~  
  



	11. XI

  
Chapter 11  
  
  
  
An uncomfortable silence drifted around them as Elena massaged her temples. Elena just didn't know what to say to Rude. She had spent hours with him at her apartment, searching through what was left of Hojo's notes and files. After staring at the computer screen so long a headache had happily nested itself in the sensitive areas behind her eyes and temples...which is why she had asked Rude to drive.  
  
It had been easy to avoid the subject of the other night when she'd made a complete monster of herself. All she had to do was concentrate on the computer and keep their minute conversation on the task at hand. That proved easy since Rude was never much of a conversationalist.  
  
For some reason the characteristic silence the bald man emitted was making her more uncomfortable than it ever had. Elena smoothed her thumb over the manila folder of printed results in her lap. The streetlights reflected off his sunglasses. She couldn't read his eyes through his shades and that made her even more fidgety.  
  
He was probably mentally berating himself for telling her how he felt. It took a lot of courage to tell someone you cared deeply for them...even more so in Rude's case. And she rejected him...well, not quite. But he would probably see it that way. How she wanted to tell him it wasn't him, it was her. She was too shaken up after Tseng to engage in anything beyond simple friendship. She wanted to tell him to give her some time and she would be ready for him...not to give up on her. But she lacked the strength to do even that...  
  
Rude kept his steady gaze on the road ahead of them. He could sense Elena trying to read him. But when he looked over at her, she just sat rigidly in her seat with her hands folded stiffly on top of the manila folders.  
  
/I make her so uncomfortable... /  
  
When he halted at a red light he tried to think of something that would ease the tension. The idea died before he made an attempt.  
  
/I'll only make it worse... /  
  
After finding nothing distracting enough outside, Elena made an attempt of her own.  
  
"I hope we find Reno's mother. This has to be tearing him up right now."  
  
She didn't really expect a response but he did reply.  
  
"Yeah." He pressed the gas petal at the change of the light. "We'll find her..."  
  
The silence claimed its throne among them once more as he puled into the company garage. Darkly angry tire tread marks caught his attention on the way in. Whoever created those had to have been out of there in quite a hurry. The company lot was kept spotless just like the rest of the company grounds. Every evening just after the main business closed, every oil spot and mark was sprayed away. These particular marks had to have been made recently...  
  
Elena didn't notice them so he didn't bring it to her attention. They stepped out the car and clutching the folder of research, she followed him inside the building.  
  
  
* * * * *  
  
  
Reno tapped his nightstick against the side of his armchair rapidly. He was absorbed in worried thoughts and hadn't realized he was doing it. Across the office, Cloud and Reeve went through tape after tape of surveillance but nothing useful was turning up.   
  
Tifa stole glances at Reno's distressed form. No doubt, he was mentally beating himself in the head over the whole thing.   
  
Now why did that disturb her so much?  
  
She tiredly rose from her seat and sauntered over to the wall dominating mirror behind Reeve's desk. It was past midnight. She couldn't see much past her feeble reflection in the tinted pane. Tifa really just wanted to be in bed...forget the sandwhich. But she couldn't leave the others here to work.  
  
But what could she do to help?  
  
"What about the nurse?"  
  
Everyone snapped their heads around to look at the speaker: Reno.   
  
"What nurse?" Reeve asked in response to Reno's quiet inquiry.  
  
"That skinny, black-haired nurse who kept hanging around my mother."  
  
Reeve looked to the others for an explanation. "I don't remember having a...black-haired nurse."  
  
Cloud and Tifa's brows furrowed simultaneously.  
  
"But there was one," Cloud confirmed, "I ran into her by Casca's room sometime before Reno left."  
  
Reeve narrowed his eyes thoughtfully and slid over to his computer. He pulled up a list with pictures of his medical staff. There three nurses, none of which had black hair, and his chief doctor, Dr. Naid.   
  
"We don't have a black-haired nurse, Reno," he repeated.  
  
Reno suddenly stood and walked over to the computer to confirm it for himself. As Reeve had said, there was no such person.  
  
"Cloud, you said you checked in on her and she was asleep?"  
  
Cloud nodded in affirmation, taking surprised notice that Reno actually called him by his name.  
  
"Reeve, why don't you show us footage from say...an hour before Cloud checked her."  
  
They all had a vague feeling of what he was looking for. Reeve put in a tape and began fast forwarding through it. After minutes of seeing either Cloud or the doctor the woman in question made her appearance. Reeve played the tape at normal speed and they all gathered around the monitor.  
  
A thin woman in the company nurse uniform looked around. Seeing that the hall was clear she slowly opened the door to Giovanna's room and slipped inside with a black briefcase.  
  
Reno heard Tifa gasp quietly behind him.   
  
As expected, Cloud then peeked into the room and continued on down the hall.   
  
"I swear I didn't see anyone when I looked in!" Cloud stated defensively.  
  
"It's alright, Cloud. This isn't your fault..."  
  
"The hell it isn't!" Reno interrupted Tifa. "Maybe if you were a little more observant..."  
  
"I...am...observant," Cloud retorted with restrained calm.  
  
"Guys *please* ," Reeve began, gesturing towards the monitor. "If you pay attention, she might give us some clue as to where she took her."  
  
They reluctantly turned their attention back to the screen and watched. The camera had been programmed to move back and forth between the two patient rooms. And after several rounds the nurse came out struggling under the weight of an unconscious woman...Giovanna.  
  
She had probably been to distracted to avoid that particular security camera while carrying her victim. After the nurse continued off the monitor, Tifa released a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. Now how would they figure out where she was?  
  
"Now that doesn't tell us a *damn* thing about where she went," Reno glared accusingly at Reeve.  
  
"I never said that it would but it was worth a shot."  
  
"Why not try tapes of the parking lot..." Rude startled everyone from the door.  
  
"Why the parking lot?" Cloud asked softly, his blue eyes glowing tiredly in the dimly lit office.  
  
"Just a hunch," Rude replied without offering anything else in the way of an explanation.  
  
Reeve sighed, "Why not? This is the last one before we call it quits for tonight." He allowed Rude to fish among the bin of tapes while Elena sat her folder on his desk.  
  
"Um, guys? While he's looking for that you might want to hear what Rude and I found out."  
  
She opened the folder while they gathered around the desk.  
  
"One thing we can be certain of is that it was definitely Hojo that started this whole thing," she began as Cloud rolled his eyes in scorn for the hated scientist. "He had a secret project planned before he got caught up in the whole Jenova Project. He randomly selected an snatched twenty women from around the slums for the project." Elena pulled out a list of names and corresponding tank numbers from the folder. Sure enough, Casca and Giovanna's names were there.  
  
"He called the project the 'Cetra Procreation'. He planned to clone a Cetra's egg cells and implant them into different women along with a nutrient rich mako solution."  
  
"Why mako?" Cloud interrupted.  
  
"Well, he believed that the developing Cetra would be weaker growing inside an alien womb...a human's. So going by pretty much the same principle as mako infusions for SOLDIER, he developed a safer, or weaker rather, solution for the embryo. Not all women's bodies would except both a Cetra embryo and the mako so he tested several to find twenty women who could. Even so, the 'mother' was expected to die around the gestation period."  
  
"So you mean even women whose bodies would except the embryo and mako would die anyway before the experiment was over?"   
  
Elena nodded gravely to Cloud's question. She heard Reno mutter something like "the sick bastard" under his breath.   
  
"That's horrible!" Tifa exclaimed.  
  
"That's only half of it." She tucked some unruly blonde strands back behind her ears and continued. "He planned to keep snatching women for the project until he had enough Cetra to breed them amongst themselves. He also made designs for tanks that would speed up their growth. In a matter of time he could have had an entire army of Cetra at his disposal."  
  
"How was he getting funds for this type of experimentation?" Tifa addressed Reeve.  
  
"I wouldn't be surprised if the old president was overseeing it personally," Reeve answered bitterly. "All Hojo had to do was explain how beneficial the project would be to him and he would have money pumped right into the lab's funds. No one but Hojo and himself could prove it, though. "  
  
Tifa noticed Reno suddenly go pale.  
  
"Well it's a good thing he never got back to the project," Cloud said, speaking for everyone.  
  
"Yeah..." Tifa agreed still eyeing Reno. "But what about Casca? Won't she be back to steal her too?"  
  
"Most likely," Elena replied thoughtfully. "I doubt she'll try anything right away though."  
  
"I'll make sure she's guarded tonight then," Reeve assured.  
  
"Would *this* be who we're looking for?" Rude asked from where he'd been viewing a security tape of the lot.  
  
He gestured to a dark-haired woman on the screen.  
  
"That's the bitch, Rude," Reno confirmed through clenched teeth.  
  
"But what about *him*?" Cloud asked pointing to a brawny light haired man following the 'nurse'. He had who looked like Giovanna easily slung over one muscular shoulder. He placed her in the back seat of a dark car before they sped out of the lot.  
  
"...Hired help...?" Elena suggested meekly.  
  
"One more bastard who'll learn the hard way not to screw with me or my mother," Reno answered threateningly. He turned to leave but Elena grabbed his shoulder.  
  
"You can't go off to find her by yourself, Reno. We have nothing to go on yet," she reasoned.   
  
"She'll be miles away by tomorrow, Elena."  
  
"But what good will it do you to comb the entire city of Midgar with no info to start with?"  
  
He looked to Rude and Reeve.  
  
"She's right Reno," Reeve agreed. "We'll start first thing tomorrow. I know you're worried about her but there isn't much we can do at one in the morning with no leads."  
  
His eyes narrowed at everyone. Once again, the familiar feeling that they were against him festered. His defensive frown curved into a mirthless smirk. He chuckled bitterly in his throat. "Oh, I'm not going tonight then. But tomorrow we start early...very early."  
  
He left Reeve's office in two long strides, leaving the rest to sigh tiredly.  
  
Reeve bade the rest of them 'good night' while he checked to make sure guards were posted at Casca's door as promised.  
  
  
-~-~-~-  
  



	12. XII

Chapter 12

Chapter 12

He didn't sleep. He wasn't tired, not that he would have slept even if he was tired. He didn't deserve the luxury of sleep, especially since his mother was somewhere in danger…pain even. 

No. 

There would be no sleep, dreams, or anything like that. He deserved to be awake, staring up at the ceiling of his room at headquarters trying to come up with a plan of some sort to find his mother. 

Not that he was making any progress.

Running a frustrated hand through his molten locks, the Turk dragged himself out of bed and plodded to the bathroom. If scrutinizing the shadow darkened ceiling of his bedroom wasn't helping then maybe a scalding shower would.

Well, it might burn some ideas into his foggy head, anyway.

He opened the misty glass shower door and shed the sweatpants and T-shirt he had been 'sleeping' in. He didn't bother with the lights…there was no since in shocking eyes that were adapted to the dark shadows of his quarters which were occasionally illuminated by blunt servings of lightening.

Reno turned on the hot water only to find himself backed against the cool shower wall to avoid the icy waterfall.

__

Damn showers…

After waiting long enough for the water to warm up, he settled for lukewarm. Why did the water temperature have to fuss when everything else was already bugging him? 

After his brisk shower he dressed and headed to the little kitchenette for some coffee. It was just after five thirty, too early for the café to be open but his own caffeine-rich brew would suffice. He took a seat at the window in the living room. Parting the blinds so that he could watch the magnificent display of lighting across the Midgar sky.

Storms were really something else from so high up at HQ. He squinted as a particularly bright arm of lightening snaked its way through black storm clouds, revealing that they weren't black but a smoky grey.

__

Grey…grey like my walls, grey like my thoughts, grey like my life…

He had spent all night wracking his feeble brain for ideas and came up with nothing. Life had always been bleak…and empty…and _grey_ ever since SHE was stolen from him twenty years ago. Gangs, stealing, killing…it was all one dull grey blur. 

__

And the grey just darkened a few shades…

Reno cut off is own thoughts, scowling at how he always "thought too damn much" when he was by himself too long. For second he toggled the idea of going next door to see if Rude was up yet. But Rude was no morning person. He reported for work as early as was required of him, but no earlier. Besides, Rude had his own problems to chew on when he woke up.

The corner of Reno's mouth was tugged by a humorous smirk. Who would have thought that blonde chatterbox would catch his bald friend's attention? She was probably up then, come to think of it. She likely got up before dawn to put her face on. He could imagine her now, meticulously applying her mascara as if she were always readying herself for a hot date. And if Rude played his cards right…

…she would be.

He sat his empty mug on the counter grabbed his Turks jacket. As he slipped into his shoes his left hand shot to his abdomen to greet an unusually sharp bout of pain. He leaned against the door for support as small droplets of sweat beaded his forehead. He stayed that way for what seemed like forever but was really less than a minute. When the pain died he straightened up and frowned in confusion.

__

What the hell was that all about?

He cautiously opened the door, expecting the pain to return full force. But there was no sign of the mysterious ailment. He suddenly thought he should tell someone. He didn't normally have pains like that…they could be serious…

He immediately squashed the idea. It was probably just a stomachache. If he couldn't make coffee, that was his problem. Besides, he had more important things to worry about. 

/\^/\^/\^/\

She clawed the floor of her cell, desperate for release. Still wearing the thin hospital gown from yesterday, Giovanna writhed on the floor no longer trying to suppress her screams of agony, which at this point were reduced to pathetic wails that barely carried past the thick glass wall of her cell.

Like cramps from hell the pain ripped through her abdomen mercilessly. She wanted to die, begged for it, but her pleas were nothing more than pathetic screams, thanks to the pain. She curled into a near fetal position, trying to hide from her torture. On the padded floor her nails made a dull ripping noise that was easily drowned out by her lamentations. 

__

What had they done to her?

"You sure that's normal, Lao?"

Lao-Anne's head jerked in both surprise and annoyance when she realized Cole was in the room.

"Am I sure *what* is normal?"

"That," he replied pointing at the display Giovanna was putting on in her cell.

For a brief moment the scientist considered whether or not it _was _normal. She knew there would be some discomfort, maybe even pain but she didn't expect much in the way of what Giovanna was experiencing.

Perhaps she is weaker than I thought…

"Why wouldn't it be? I never said this operation would be enjoyable and her comfort is a rather small sacrifice for what my labors will bear," she replied somewhat testily. "And besides, I'm the scientist here. You just concentrate on what I'm 

paying you for."

"I was just sayin'," he replied defensively.

"Well _don't_ say. That's my job."

"Hey, she stopped," Cole exclaimed, eager to redirect Lao-Anne's attention.

Once again facing Giovanna's cell, Lao-Anne saw that Specimen B had indeed stopped writhing and twitching. She rolled onto her back slowly, her chest heaving with the exertion. Fiery red strands stuck to the sweat on her neck and forehead. The rest pooled around her head in a wavy puddle of limp silk. 

Her two captors watched her intently while she lay there catching her breath. If not for the ragged rise and fall of her chest they would have assumed her dead. She wearily wiped away any remaining tears of pain.

"What…did you do to me?"

It took a while for Lao-Anne to realize Giovanna had spoken. Her voice was horse and barely audible through the thick glass of her cell.

"What?" the scientist demanded while taking a few steps towards the cell.

"What did you do to me?" Giovanna asked again in the exact same volume. She honestly couldn't speak any louder than that.

"I've injected a few specialties of mine into your body so that it will cease the production of its own ovum."

"Why does it…hurt so much?"

"Well, I've injected you with a sort of poison that is destroying any eggs already there. It shouldn't damage any other organs, just ovum," she explained mock reassuringly.

Giovanna thought hard about what she was just told. 

__

Destroy her egg cells…

Why would they do that to her? She hadn't asked for any of this. She couldn't remember doing anything wrong to deserve it. All she wanted was to be back with her son, spending time with him.

Giovanna was silent for several minutes. Lao-Anne waited expectantly for her specimen to ask any more questions. After a few minutes she appeared unconscious. Figuring she should check for a pulse and any weakening vital signs, Professor Hojo unlocked the cell and went in. Cole raised a questioning eyebrow at her but she ignored it.

"What are you trying to do with me?"

Lao-Anne jumped back a little at Giovanna's sudden speech. She'd thought the girl was unconscious.

"What do you mean 'what am I trying to do'?"

"Why did you inject those things into me? What are you trying to do?"

Lao-Anne allowed herself a confident smirk. "That, young lady, you'll find out soon enough." She pulled another syringe of pink fluid from her lab coat and kneeled by the redhead. "You should rest while my poison does it's job…wouldn't want you wearing yourself out again." She injected the substance into the soft flesh below the joint of her elbow. Giovanna was immediately unconscious.

"Come Cole," Lao-Anne ordered while she left the cell. "I think it's time we collected Specimen A."

He followed her to her office after one last look at the unconscious redhead.

/\^/\^/\^/\

Author's…excuses:

Really sorry that took so long. If anyone is curious…my AOL crashed and my D drive decided to stop operating so my big sis couldn't reinstall 6.0. I ended up having to use 5.0 just so I could check mail and load this. Plus (don't worry-last excuse) I haven't had as many chances to use the comp as I usually do…sisters trying to fix it and all. Well, I'll definitely work hard to get the next one up sooner. Thanks to anyone who is still reading this and for the reviews!!

By the way…

Is it me or is FF.net on the fritz again? I couldn't even get in the other day…

Anyway..Xiexie ni!

**__**

~::DrunkpoOdle::~


	13. XIII

"The Shell"  
Chapter XIII  
By: DrunkpoOdle  
  
Author's Notes:   
First off, I want to say duibuqi (sorry) for the gap between updates so..."SORRY SORRY SORry SOrry sorry!"  
Now...I been incredibly busy...not to mention my comp crashed (viruses n stuff) and my workload (school) seriously took me by surprise. This update doesn't necessarily mean my schedule got any clearer...I just got absolutely SICK of watching the days fly by while I could only come up with time for one or two sentences of writing. Plus I know what it's like to check everyday for an update and not see one for literally MONTHS. And I must say that the fact it has taken me more than an actual month to update is embarrassing. I'll definitely try to chuck out another chapter sooner but...  
Anyway, I tried to make this chapter longer since everyone waited so long for it. Again SORRY!!  
  
~~~~  
  
Here it was bright, a brightness to conquer all brightness. Yet, it wasn't a painful brightness as one might expect. It would have been almost comforting if she'd known what was causing it. It came from everywhere and nowhere all at the same time. It left no shadow to fester and grow. She felt exposed yet covered and protected by it. It was gentle but strong and pulsating. It was so overwhelming to her senses.  
It was divine...  
As if not already proven, this was no ordinary light. It carried a message meant for her alone. She heard it loud and clear, but not physically. It droned on and on in her head through a thousand voices. The message was that she did have a purpose.  
  
You are needed.  
  
Needed how? She wanted to ask, but her voice was missing as if some invisible force had robbed her of its presence. She strained to see the source of those voices but she couldn't see past the light. It was as if the light hid them. Out of lack of a better explanation, she came to the conclusion that the voices were the light.  
They told her again and again that she was needed. She tried to speak again but her voice was nowhere to be found. Perhaps she was only meant to listen...  
...and so she did.  
  
You are needed...in a very special way.  
You are no accident, no mistake...  
no mistake...  
  
The world of brightness faded, that is, the fascinating brightness began to lessen in sharpness. She felt herself blink - once, twice. Suddenly she was awake back at the clinic, in her bed, in her room. Tifa was standing in the doorway sleepily running a hand through her dark locks, still damp from her early shower. As she leaned against the doorframe her shoulders drooped lazily allowing the collar of her T-shirt to follow suite. Through half-open lids she unconsciously studied some microscopic crack in the wooden door. Her entire countenance in general seemed to spell out *exhaustion*.  
  
"Tifa?"  
  
For the first time Tifa seemed to acknowledge that the sleeping Cetra was no longer sleeping.  
  
"Oh, hey Casca. How are you feeling?" She perked up a little, trying to erase Casca's previous view of her.  
  
"Good, I suppose. I had the weirdest dream..." her voice trailed off as the recalled the dream with startling clarity. Somehow the whole thing seemed like something she should keep to herself. "So, what time is it?"  
  
"Just after six. Reno wants to get an early start tracking down who kidnapped Giovanna. I don't blame him."  
  
Casca was reminded of what she'd been told yesterday. "How is he holding up? Anything I can do for him?"  
  
"Well, you just concentrate on resting up. Dr. Naid will be here in another hour or so." She came over and comfortably seated herself at the end of the bed, careful not to sit on Casca's feet.  
  
Casca leaned back into the pillow a bit. "Why would someone want to kidnap her? She's just been reunited with son and now she's gone. It doesn't make any sense," she mused aloud.  
  
Tifa's jaw twitched a little. She really didn't think sharing what Elena had told them with Casca was a good idea. I was important the she know the truth but Tifa didn't want to be the one to tell her some maniac Hojo-wannabe was after her as well and planned to use her for some sick and dangerous experiment.  
  
"Yeah, some sick people out there," she replied.  
  
~~~  
  
Over an hour later Tifa, Casca, and the rest of the group were seated in Reeve's office, save Reno who paced anxiously behind his desk. Reeve clicked and typed away at his computer, sorting through list after list for leads. The room was silent except for the constant tapping of keys or the occasional sigh from Elena. The general tension level was moderate though Reno's pacing wasn't doing much to depress it.  
Tifa futilely struggled to suppress a yawn that had been nagging her for over a minute. Cloud idly twirled the Ultima Weapon using its needle-sharp point as an axis. Casca, seated next to Tifa, unconsciously slid her feet in and out of her white clinic slippers. Her borrowed T-shirt and cotton shorts were a little big for her but they were the smallest garments Tifa had to offer her. Tifa hadn't brought any extra shoes so Casca settled for the simple cotton slippers from her clinic room. She scrutinized her bare legs, noting that they were significantly paler than normal. Her fingernails seemed to have grown noticeably. They were at least an inch longer than what she could remember.  
  
...be filing those down later.  
  
"Reno could you please cut that out? I know you want to find her but wearing a hole in my floor isn't helping. Besides, it's distracting." Reeve's voice startled them all into gazing in his direction.  
  
Reno halted his pacing to glare at Reeve's back before retreating to the window. He leaned against the wall, absently tapping his nightstick against his leg. The "pat pat pat" it produced was just as distracting as the pacing but Reeve rolled his eyes and decided not to bother.  
The office stayed basically the same for nearly another hour before Casca snapped her head in Reno's direction. Did she just hear a grunt? Her hearing was naturally sharper than that of most humans, which was most likely why no one else seemed to notice. But it could have been nothing. She studied his frame silently. He was slouching a bit more but considering how early he'd gotten up that morning...  
She eased back in her chair earning a brief glance from Tifa. She closed her eyes and relaxed that way for mere minutes before she heard it again, only this time it was loud enough that she was certain it wasn't normal. She snapped her head in his direction again but she wasn't alone. Everyone in the office was soon staring at Reno.  
  
"Are you alright?" Casca asked him.  
  
He didn't face her or anyone else in the room. He seemed to be trying to hide the fact that he was in some sort of pain.  
  
"Reno...?"  
  
"I'm fine!" he snapped through obviously clenched teeth. But Casca wouldn't be deterred.  
  
"No. You are in pain. Please tell us what's wrong?" she urged gently. No one moved.  
  
"Look, I...said I was...ack!" In an attempt to turn around and prove he was perfectly ok he collapsed to the floor as a particularly strong current of pain ripped through his abdomen.  
  
Reeve being nearer to him was at his side instantly. Everyone else rushed over to help him.  
  
"Reno are you ok? What's happening?"  
  
He proceeded to breathe heavily once the pain subsided. Small droplets of sweat glistened on his forehead, plastering soft red strands to his brow. He lay there until he was absolutely certain more pain was not on the way. He began to sit up but half a dozen hands halted him.  
  
"Relax man. You mind telling us what the hell just happened to you?" Cloud demanded.  
  
"Hell if I know! Now, you guys mind letting me stand up? I'm fine," he insisted somewhat irritably. Reno wasn't used to that type of attention. He was too used to taking care of himself to have everyone hovering over him like he would break any second.  
  
"How can you be sure?" Cloud asked, exchanging wary glances with Tifa and Reeve. "Like, has this happened before?"  
  
He swatted all the hands away so that he could stand up. Regaining some of his composure, he picked up his weapon from where he'd dropped it a moment ago before brushing himself off. "So what if it has? That isn't the main problem here."  
  
"Wait, hold on a sec. This happened before?" Tifa's delicate brown narrowed in concern.  
  
"Where did it hurt?" Casca asked.  
  
"It's just a little stomach ache. I can handle it."  
  
"Reno. If you expect us to believe that was "just a little stomach ache"..."  
  
"Elena, if I said I'm all right, I'm all right!" he snapped, not pleased with how everyone was overreacting.  
  
For a few seconds everyone exchanged questioning glances. "Whatever you say," Reeve replied for everyone, although it was clear how unconvinced everyone was. "Well, I did get something," he began, averting his attention back to his search. "Rude, Elena, I matched an address to that car we saw them get in. I want you two to go check it out."  
  
Reno narrowed his eyes at his superior. "And just what am I su-"  
  
"Reno, you watch over Casca."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Protect her for a while. If that wacko plans on finishing the project any time soon she'll be back to collect her as well. Why don't you take her somewhere she'll be safe until we get this under control?" he finished. He'd left Reno out the action on purpose, still a bit worried about him. He just hoped Reno wouldn't make a fuss about it.  
  
"Why can't Strife or Tifa do that?" he complained.  
  
"I need Tifa and Cloud to look into something else for me. C'mon Reno."  
  
He narrowed his eyes further, deciding whether or not he should pursue the issue. It was obvious Reeve didn't want him in on the excitement just in case he had a relapse of whatever had ailed him moments ago. Truthfully, he didn't know what was wrong with him or if it would happen again. But he didn't want the mere possibility of something happening to keep him from helping his own mother. Casca had quietly come beside him and was now staring at him hopefully. How could he say no? But...  
  
"Alright," he growled, angry at the decision. "But if you find anything..."  
  
"...you'll be the first to know," Tifa assured. Reeve nodded his consent. With a final glare he turned and left the office, Casca hurrying after him with a quick wave good bye.  
  
~~~  
  
The pain brought her screaming from her merciful slumber. She'd thought the pain would be over but it was even stronger than it was before the Professor put her out. What was this pain? Surely something was wrong. It hurt way too much. God how she wished to be back with her son, learning more about him, letting him know just how much she loved him. But the pain wouldn't have it. It was relentless. It swallowed all pleasant thoughts so that she only knew pain. Writhe and scream was all she could do in her defense. Oh how she wished it would all end.  
  
  
~-~/~-~  
  
  



	14. XIV

Chapter XIV

By: DrunkpoOdle

~~~

"It's so…smooth," Casca observed while getting into Reno's car.

"I guess…" 

"Actually," she began, taking in the rest of the cars in the HQ lot, "they're all smooth like this."

He slammed the door and started the engine. "Older cars weren't very streamlined," he remarked dryly.

"Yeah, I suppose the models really have changed a lot since I last saw one." She idly ran her fingers across the velvety material lining the inside of the door. "I used to think my best friend's car was the greatest," she recalled with a reminiscent smile. "It was a bright blue Comet Snatcher. He would always tease me when I sat up front saying that seat was reserved for the 'hot ones'." She let out a small chuckled, "Funny, I was the only one who ever sat there."

He rounded a corner and stopped at a red light. "What was his name?" he asked with mild interest.

She was a bit surprised he was listening to her reminiscent chatter. "Dree. He's, or _was_ a SOLDIER. The last time I saw him he was being transferred to Junon. They were just building some sort of military base there and wanted more muscle on the premises. You know, rebel fractions and all." He nodded once in understanding. "I would think it's finished by now."

He scanned his rearview mirror for a tail, something all Turks did when traveling to their actual home. It wasn't unheard of for someone to take one his hits personal and try something stupid like revenge. Some people just didn't know…

"Yeah. They did a pretty good job I guess. A WEAPON attacked it a few years back. It actually stayed in one piece." He figured he might as well talk to keep his mind off things.

"It's hard to believe all of the WEAPONS are gone. What will the planet do should something else threaten its life?"

"I dunno," he shrugged. "You're the Cetra. You tell me"

She smiled thoughtfully, tugging at her seatbelt. She thought of the dream she'd had that morning. Would saving the planet be what she was "needed" for? "Maybe it'll make another WEAPON…"

Reno hadn't heard her last words. Something in the road ahead caught his attention. "What the hell?" There seemed to be some fair or parade up ahead with brightly colored tents and tables. There were neon construction cones barring the street he needed to get to his apartment. With a frustrated curse he honked his horn to get someone's attention.

"I wasn't aware you lived on such an exciting street," she noted in an attempt. to lighten the darkened mood. She didn't particularly succeed.

Soon a middle-aged man wearing a dark blue jacket sporting the word SECURITY came over to Reno's window with an annoyed expression. "Now what's the meaning of all th- Oh, a Turk…" He swore under his breath now visibly trembling. "S-sir, how c-can I help you?" he managed to ask.

"What the hell is all this? I need to get through here."

"You can't now." Reno narrowed his eyes and the man grew paler. "I-Imean I can't move the cones until the festival is over, and that could take hours."

"Whatever…"

"Well you could park your car, and what a beautiful car it is, along there and you won't have far to walk." He pointed to a shady street before the cones.

"Walk…?"

"W-well if you don't mind, Sir." He noticed Reno's nightstick resting comfortably between the seats where it could be…_easily accessed_. "It's entirely up to you! Whatever you want to do." When Reno didn't seem to pay him anymore attention he waved a quick 'bye' and hurried as far away from the car as he could.

Reno put the car back in gear and prepared to drive right on through the cones. "Reno? What are doing?" she inquired nervously.

"What does it look like, sweetcheeks?"

"Please don't drive through their festival. You could hurt someone! Look at all those happy kids."

He couldn't have cared less about "happy kids". He just wanted to get home so he could snap open a nice cold beer and watch TV. "Well, do you want to walk?" he asked expecting a negative reply.

"I don't mind. You can't live very far, right?"

He rolled his emerald eyes and parked the car. They walked along side the tents and headed down a short street. A sandy-haired man poked his head out of one of the tents. "They're on foot now, Lao. We should go or we'll lose 'em."

A dark-haired woman stepped out of the tent. "Well, what are you waiting for? Go!"

He took off in pursuit of the two, careful to stay out of sight. He managed, through sheer luck, to remain undetected for a block. Reno and Casca walked in silence most of the way. Reno had caught sight of the big man dodge behind a parked car but showed no outward signs that he'd noticed. "Casca," she turned to him from where she'd been obliviously observing the pleasant street, "we're being followed but don't look back." She nodded.

"How many people?"

"Just one from what I've seen."

"What do we do?" she asked, fear creeping into her voice.

"Just do as I say." She nodded quickly. She felt him take her hand and looked at him questioningly before she realized he'd placed something in it. "Those are the keys to my apartment. When I say so, I want you to run behind the third building you see. Enter the fourth building from the back and make sure no one sees you. My apartment is 2-k on the 2nd floor. Stay there and wait for me. Got it?"

It sounded like a lot but she nodded her head anyway. "Ok. But what about you? What if there are more?" 

"I'll be fine. It's you they're probably after." Casca paled a bit at the last statement. When they rounded the last corner Reno dodged into a high row of hedges pulling Casca with him. "Ready?" She shook her head furiously. She was scared. "Go!" he whispered hoarsely. As promised, she took off in a sprint towards his apartment. He watched her until she disappeared behind the third building. A second later Cole peeked around the corner. He looked confused. Where had they gone that quick?

Reno watched him through narrowed eyes as he turned up the charge on his weapon. 

__

So that's the bastard…

As Cole passed the bush Reno was hiding behind he quietly came up behind him. Pressing the tip of his weapon to Cole's back he spoke, "Where is she?"

Clearly startled, Cole gasped. "W-where d'you come from?" The queer scent of sawdust tickled his nose.

"That's not important. Where is she?" he asked more forcefully, giving Cole a jolt to make him focus.

"Ah man! That shit hurts like hell! I don't know what you're talking about."

"My mother dammit!" He shocked him again but longer this time. Cole fell to the ground groaning angrily. "I won't ask you again," he threatened while giving Cole a hard kick in the side to turn him over. As he rolled over Cole thrust a tiny capsule onto the sidewalk. It broke open in a cloud of grey smoke.

Reno backed away, not wanting to get caught in it. When the smoke cleared two greenish squid-like blobs were advancing toward him.

"What the hell…?" He blasted them with a strong current from the Electromag Rod, reducing them to a sizzling puddle of chemicals. Having seen Reno deal with them so quickly Cole produced a handful of the capsules and tossed them to the ground. A dozen of the nasty creatures soon inhabited the sidewalk, spitting some toxic substance in Reno's direction.

"Take care Turk boy!" Cole waved and took off in a jog back the way he came only to run into Lao-Anne.

"Where's the Cetra?" she demanded after realizing he was alone.

"She got away," he mumbled.

"Got away? How? Didn't my capsules help?"

"Yeah, but I used them to get away from the Turk…"

"What!?"

"…"

"You were supposed to snatch her and then leave the capsules you moron!" She was furious now. How long would she have to wait to get things started? "Well get her later then," she decided through clenched teeth. "I need to check on B anyway. She didn't react well with those ovacides…" 

She turned away mumbling to herself while Cole shrugged and followed her.

~~~

Reno blasted away at the advancing creatures. They generally weren't very strong. A good serving of high voltage was all it really took to destroy them but in numbers things were different. Each was roughly the size of a large watermelon. They were coated in a thick mucus of concentrated poisons meant to protect their soft bodies while giving it a greenish tint. They all squinted at him through tiny black slits slapping their tentacles and the pavement to drag themselves over to him. The appendages left behind a trail of the virulent drivel for any unfortunate individual to slip on and have their skin eaten away.

Reno was careful of these traits as he led the deadly swarm from the sidewalk to the lot behind a nearby building. It was a small building of private offices whose lot was mercifully empty save a large green dumpster at the far end. He fried a few more but there were at least half a dozen left. If he could get on top of the dumpster he could nail all of them from the vantage point. With one last jolt of energy from his weapon he turned in a sprint for the dumpster. He'd made it about five or six feet when his abdomen began to ache.

__

Not now dammit!

Unlike the other times there was a bit of a warning instead of the full-blown agony. But it wasn't long before his abdomen practically roared in pain. He stumbled and fell a few paces from his destination. A second later he was vaguely aware of the material dissolving from a fist-sized area on his pant leg. It slowly ate away to the flesh of his calf leaving him dizzy with pain. 

__

They must be…real close now…

In desperation he swung his arm around firing wildly behind him by holding down the trigger of the nightstick. His abdomen was still on fire leaving him quite immobile at the moment but it soon subsided. He released the pressure on his weapon gasping for breath. When he was finally able to stand again he surveyed the lot behind him. The only traces of his slimy foes were steamy puddles of dark green and black swirls. He peered into the remains frowning at how the goo distorted his tired features.

__

Serves ya right, snotballs.

~~~

By the time Reno got to the second floor of his building he could barely put pressure on his left leg without crying out. The venom had eaten a fair amount of flesh and the pain was nearly equal to the previous pains in his abdomen. He stumbled past door after door until the shiny gold shapes of 2-k stared back at him. He rapped lightly on the white surface of his door. It opened just a hair before it closed again and there was the sound of the chain being unlatched. He hadn't realized how heavily he was leaning against the door until he nearly fell inside.

"Reno? You're hurt!" she exclaimed reading his pain-distorted facade. 

"It'll be fine. I just need to stay off…it for a while," he muttered through clenched teeth. He ignominiously lost his footing and collapsed. As soon as his injured leg made blunt contact with the hardwood floor of his hallway the pain was unbearable. His mouth parted in a silent cry of pain and he was instantly unconscious.

Casca shook him gently and called his name a few times but he wouldn't budge. Carefully rolling him over, she was met by the horrible sight of his injury. There was a jagged hole the size of a human hand in his pant leg where the venom had eaten its way through to his flesh. The tainted flesh looked raw and angry with blisters. It was an unhealthy brownish green and the size of the infected area was spreading.

__

What do I do? What do I do? She asked herself frantically. There had to be a way to stop the poison. She tried to clear her head but the screaming wound on Reno's leg was quite distracting. _Ok, I can heal him. That should help._ She murmured a few words in her native tongue, her dark brows furrowing slightly in concentration. Ethereal tendrils of green mist snaked around the angry wound. Quickly the assaulted tissues were repaired and magically grafted back together. When Casca finally reopened her eyes the only remnants of Reno's injury was the ripped cloth of his pant leg. She noted with a bit of disappointment that he didn't wake up but was breathing evenly.

As gently as she could, Casca hauled Reno into what she guessed was his bedroom. With all of her might she got Reno onto the soft green sheets. She removed his shoes and arranged him as comfortably as she could. She sat down at the edge of the bed, drawing her knees up to her chin as she contemplated what she should do.

~~~

__

"So, how old is the lil' tike?"

"He just turned five."

"Five already? You should have brought him around sooner, Gi."

"Well, you know how dangerous it is around the factory. I'd die if something happened to him."

"I won't let anything happen to him. Just be down in fifteen minutes…then I'll be on break."

"See you then."

The little boy stared up at his mother with hopeful eyes. "So, can we go, Mommy?"

Hanging up the phone she let out a defeated sigh. "I guess so. But no matter what, don't touch anything and stay right next to me. There'll be a lot of dangerous stuff there, ok? Right next to me…"

He let out a short whoop of delight and ran to get his jacket. Giovanna threw on a sweater and helped Reno zip up his jacket. Once outside the only thing that kept Reno from running to the factory was that he didn't know the way.

After a good ten minutes of walking the two stood in front of an old rusty building with a lot full of lumber trucks. Giovanna could already see the shimmer of excitement in her son's eyes.

"Is this it, Mommy?"

She nodded, "Yes, this is where your uncle works." Taking his hand, she entered through a metal side door. The interior was that of a typical warehouse. It was large and grey. Forklifts emerged here and there with large stacks of freshly sawed lumber. The sounds of drills and saws filled the air blending with the rhythmic beeps of the forklifts to create a symphony of industrial chords. As Reno looked on in awe Giovanna scanned the room for her brother. She soon spotted him through a window in a small office-like room across the chamber.

"Come on Reno. And remember, no touching."

Making their way as carefully as possible Giovanna earned several looks from easily distracted employees. Even in her messy ponytail and casual garb she was no ugly duckling. The some went for her dark-haired brother in the office. He gave her a warm smile as she ushered Reno in and shut the door behind them. It was strange to hear so little once the door closed, drowning out the bustle outside. 

Jod Hstadin was no shrimp, a good six feet he stood. He had dark wavy hair that covered his earlobes comfortably. His smile was naturally alluring to say the least and his eyes sparkled a stunning aquamarine whenever he got excited over some new idea of his. Everyone at the factory knew him and all of the female employees adored him. 

"Hey, is this Dino?" He said patting Reno's head playfully. With a giggle he tried to duck under it. 

"It's Reno_ and yes, this is your nephew. Reno, say hello to your uncle Jod."_

"Hey," his little voice squeaked out from behind his mother's knees.

"I've got somthin' for you little man!" he announced lifting a box off the table and setting it on the floor beside his five year-old nephew. Reno looked up at his mother as if to ask permission.

"Go on, sweetie. Go see what he has for you,' she prompted. He neared the box and reached inside. His face lit up as he pulled out a little wooden trick. It was constructed simply out of unpolished scrap wood from the warehouse but it was a treasure to a five year-old boy from the slums. He emptied the rest of the box's contents on the floor. There was another truck, a few horse-shaped figures, building blocks and some wooden guns. 

"Jod," she began in a reprimanding tone, " you know how I feel about those," she said pointing to the guns.

"C'mon, Gi. All boys play with 'em. He's lucky he hasn't had to deal with real thing yet."

"And he won't. I won't have him anywhere near the real thing if I can help it…" Her voice grew a bit hushed as she eased herself into a chair across from Jod at the table. Reno rolled his new toys around on the floor behind her, making occasional car sounds to go along with the action he was simulating. Jod and Giovanna conversed for nearly half an hour. He asked how she'd been all those years. He hadn't seen her since Reno had been born because his old job was too many sectors away. He contacted her as soon as he got his new job at the lumber factory in the same sector she lived in. 

A few moments later he glanced at a round clck on the wall. "Man, my break's about over now. I should back out there," he suggested somewhat grudgingly.

They were quiet for a few seconds before Giovanna's eyes lit up. "I know, why don't you come for dinner? That way you could spend some more time with Reno. Besides," she added with a smirk, "I picked up some new pasta I want to try out."

He let out a short chuckle. "Ok then, I be there around seven-thirty. See ya Reno!" he rustled his red haired playfully before heading back out into the warehouse. No sooner had he stepped out of the breakroom was there shouts of alarm.

"Look out!" some one yelled. Reno looked up to a monstrous load of wood. But it was too late. As soon as he turned around the forklift overloaded with wood toppled over with the weight. Jod shoved him out of the way taking his place under the load. The stacks came tumbling down on Jod crushing his neck and spine and trapping him. 

Giovanna screamed and turned Reno's face towards her jeans. He was suddenly very scared. What was happening? He could tell something was wrong by the way everyone was shouting and screaming. Giovanna was crying now and men were trying to get the load off of Jod. But all who saw what happened knew Jod was killed instantly.

Workers immediately tried to call an ambulance but ShinRa owned the nearest hospital. ShinRa took their time with matters in the slums if they even planned to come at all. By the time an ambulance arrived Jod had no chance.

When they got home Reno realized he must have dropped some of his toys in all of the excitement. All he held was a wooden truck and gun. His clothes still smelled strongly of sawdust and fresh lumber. Jod didn't join Giovanna and Reno for dinner that night.

~~~

Reno's eyes fluttered before opening. It took him a few moments to realize he was in his room at home. Casca was sitting on the floor beside him, her head resting on her folded arms on the mattress. She didn't appear awake until he moved and she raised her head.

"How are you feeling?"

"Peachy."

He remembered the wound on his leg and glanced down at where it would be.

"Where'd it go?"

"I healed you. Do you feel better now?"

He hesitated a moment. "Yeah, I guess."

"We should call everyone and let them know what happened."

"No," he replied firmly. "They'll just tell me to stay out of the action. I'm not going to sit back and wait while my mother gets tortured somewhere."

"There just worried about you," she defended. "They don't want to see her hurt any more than you do." He slid off the bed and put his shoes on. She followed him out the room. "Where are you going?"

"Got a hunch. Stay here and lock the door. The number to headquarters is on the coffee table somewhere if you need something." He snatched his nightstick off the small bench near the door where Casca must have put it. "Don't leave the apartment and you'll be fine."

"But what if they come back for me? They must know I went somewhere in this neighborhood." She honestly didn't want to be left alone in the apartment should they return for her.

"Well, if my hunch is correct they won't be alive much longer to come back."

He shut the door and left her. Suddenly Casca had a bad feeling about all of this.


	15. XV

****

Chapter XV

By: DrunkpoOdle

~~~

recap: Reno rushes out on a hunch leaving Casca at his place worrying after being attacked by Cole and his little monsters. 

After two hours of trying to make himself useful, Rude got up and set his collection of printed sheets on the desk next to the laser printer. He could tell Elena had really tried to make him feel included in her work on Hojo's files but she gradually began to explain less and less until she quit talking altogether...to him, that is. Listening halfheartedly to her mumbled thoughts, he reexamined the room's furnishings for the fiftieth time. He had been ready to stand and familiarize himself with her kitchen when Pickle hopped off of a nearby bookshelf and onto Rude's lap.

The spoiled kitty made a show of purring and rubbing against Rude's arm. After looking to Elena for help, and seeing that she wasn't even paying attention, he picked up the cat and pet her head a few times. Pickle purred with renewed vigor at Rude's show of affection. Soon Rude was beginning to wonder why he never kept any pets of his own...that is, until Pickle became overly interested in the shiny black things on Rude's face.

"No, you can't have those," he reprimanded, forgetting himself and setting the shades on the desk. He continued to pamper the cat until Elena shut off the computer and stood up with a yawn. She collected her work and opened her mouth to inform Rude that she was finished. She stopped, however, mouth gaping for Rude was standing there bare-eyed for the first time since she'd met him. They were an exquisite amber, relaxed at first glance but upon keener observation she could discern an ever-present seriousness that she assumed would never go away.

It took him mere seconds to feel her eyes on him and he looked up slowly. Somehow she'd managed to close her mouth but she was still staring into his eyes. And Elena got the feeling she would be staring until he finally recovered and put his shades back on.

Rude's mouth became mysteriously dry in a matter of seconds and no matter how hard he tried he couldn't swallow. It was as if his own body wouldn't respond to his mental screaming and the only thought that was allowed to develop was 'Elena'.

No. It couldn't be him that she was looking at. She'd made it pretty clear she wasn't ready to look at him like that.

Then why did her eyes not leave his? Why did her breath just catch in her throat and why did she slowly start coming towards him?

* * * * * *

Reno had been jogging for what seemed like forever through the rundown maze of dilapidated buildings and pothole-ridden streets. He'd left his car parked assuredly in a lot outside a gas station. He smirked knowing nothing would happen to it even years after ShinRa and all its glory had been brought to the ground.

He jogged on down the narrow alley between two truck garages and stopped. Up until then he'd let his feet do all the work. He knew where he would eventually end up but not how his feet intended to get him there. He'd only been there once after the accident but somehow he'd committed the route to memory.

He stood there catching his breath in the dusty complex. He though of Casca back at his apartment and frowned. She was probably worried to death. She'd practically begged him not to go, not to leave her there. But then again, she'd only expressed her fears about her attackers returning to take her away. She really didn't make that big a fuss about him leaving, did she?

There he went getting those damn hopes up. Why the hell should she be worried about him when he only knew her for a few days.. He'd worked for the very company that hunted her people down for research against their will. She would be damned foolish to worry.

__

Reno, don't even kid yourself.

He exited the alley into a dirt intersection where the stale, but bittersweet, scent of sawdust tickled his nose. 

Well, it looked like his feet hadn't lost their touch.

He followed the scent until the menacing face of the old warehouse came into vision. Looming behind a rusted caged of barbed wire and mesh fencing, the warehouse sent chills down his spine to the fingertips resting on the fence in front of him.

Without a second thought he proceeded through the long broken lock of the gate's entrance. After no more than two steps toward the warehouse, a familiar pain resurfaced in his abdomen pulling him into an inky blackness.

* * * * * *

Rude was still unable to speak and couldn't remember ever feeling that powerless in his whole life. She was inches away from him, and as if he could sense the magic of the situation Pickle remained still and quiet.

Elena couldn't remember ever being this close to his in the entire time she'd known him. Sure there were times they been practically smashed together in confined places for cover before taking out a target but this was different...completely different. She could always stand this close to him physically and not feel the connection she was feeling now.

No, her mind screamed at her. Tseng. Were all of the things she'd felt for him gone forever? Did one look into Rude's eyes erase all of her stale yearnings for her lost love?

Elens had been completely unaware of just how close their faces were until her PHS, startling all three out of their hypnotism, came alive with its insistent beeping.

They both looked around dumbfounded for a moment before it registered that it was a PHS that had just rang and it was Elena's. She fumbled with it with shaky hands before hitting the TALK button.

"Yeah?"

"This is Casca...You know, from the hospital."

"Yeah, what's wrong?"

"I...I don't think he wanted me to say anything. He was pretty set on solving this himse--"

" Who's 'He'?" Elena interrupted, already beginning to worry.

"Um...Reno. He left about and hour and a half ago on a hunch. I tried to tell myself he'd be ok but I feel something's wrong. I understand if you think I sound crazy but I just know something awful's going to happen."

Rude watched as Elena's brows creased in concern.

"Do you have any idea where he went?"

"No. He wouldn't tell me. He just told me not leave the apartment or let anyone in, and the he'd be back. But that was a while ago and..."

Elena could tell she was trying to control her tears.

"Well, we'll be over in a little while."

"Wait. There was something else. On the way here we got attacked."

"Was anybody hurt?" she asked immediately. Rude tensed.

"Reno was hurt pretty bad but I...I healed him. I didn't get a real good look because Reno made sure I got here safe before he fought them."

"Damn. We'll be there soon, and still don't let anyone in, ok? I'll call before I come up."

"Ok."

When Elena put her PHS back inside her jacket she realized quite disappointedly that Rude had put his shades back on.

"What happened?"

"I'll explain in the car."

* * * * * *

Lao-Anne rubbed the bridge of her nose wearily. All this time and she still didn't have the Ancient in her possession. Giovanna had finally fallen asleep after another episode of screams and wails, however fitfully. From the looks of things she definitely wouldn't see the project to its end. That fact just made Lao-Anne wish the Cetra was here even more so that she could use Specimen B before it was too late.

*crunch crunch*

She groaned in frustration. How was she ever going to find that girl now? Cole hadn't seen which way she went. She couldn't have gone back to HQ, that would be too obvious. 

*crunch*

How in the world did Laenin ever manage to acquire _everything_ he needed for his projects?

*crunch crun--*

"Cole!" He stopped in mid crunch. "Will you thrown those damned things away or eat them some place else!"

He looked from her to his can of chips with an almost hurt expression on his face.

"Your Planet-forsaken Jingles are driving me insane!"

"...Pringles," he corrected quietly.

"I don't care what they're called! If I hear them again I'll make it my last feat to turn you into one."

Begrudgingly, he placed the round plastic top back on his snack and set it down on the table. Peace finally restored, Loa-Anne returned to her thoughts.

__

Now how can I get my hands on this Cetra? 

Surely her brother didn't chase every specimen of his down. He must have... 

Her eyes lit up for the first time in weeks.

He must have had them brought to him! Immediately a plan took form in her overworked brain.

"C'mon Cole, we have work to do." She snatched her coat and was out the door before Cole could even get over her change in attitude. Finally outside, he was only able to catch up with her because she'd stopped. 

"Where are we...what?" he asked after noticing her gaze. Her only answer was to slowly begin in the direction of the unconscious figure on the ground at the gate.

* * * * * * 

A.N:

__

"Once you pop, the fun don't stop!" 

*Damn* it's been forever since my last update on this story but i finally got one out. I'm really sorry for those of you who were still waiting but like i mentioned on the review page, things were seriously working against me. Every time i got a healthy bit of chapter finished my comp crashed or refused to function. The solution...A NEW PUTER!!! I've been restarting chapters ever since i got this new comp and i finally posted sumthin!

I'll try to get the next chapter out before the end of the month but i have soooo many pieces to catch up on it's frightening. 

Oh, and for Firestarter, the first chapter is now called "A New Start"

Again, thanx to all my reviewers for reminding me that i still have readers out there.

Until next time!

Xie Xie Ni!!

~DP


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